Runaways
by Saiyagurl87
Summary: Serena and Amara Tenoh have escaped their father's dark ways and now find themselves to be runaways in the vast city of Tokyo Japan. AmaraxMichelle & SerenaxDarien
1. Book 1: Prologue

Author: My twisted mind has once again thought up something cruel and dark for you readers ^_^ I do hope you enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own SM

.:Warning:. Story is very graphic on drug abuse, child abuse, molestation, and rape; so you have been fore warned!

A young girl ran her fingers through her short sandy blonde locks, as she shifted her book bag on her shoulders. She was adorned in the boys' elementary school uniform, clad in a white button down shirt, black slacks, and black dress shoes. She kept her head bowed and ignored her surroundings and the people around her as she walked down the hallways of her school.

She suddenly stopped when she stood in front of a classroom and slowly raised her head up, revealing emerald green eyes and a dark black and blue bruise beneath her left eye. Her eyes rested upon a smaller blonde whom had long golden blonde hair held up in two odangos and wore the female version of the school's uniform; white long sleeved button down blouse, black knee length skirt, white knee high socks, and black dress shoes. She was placing her belongings in her book bag as her 2nd grade teacher patiently waited for her student to complete her task.

The younger girl placed her book bag upon her shoulders and turned towards the one standing in the doorway, a grin creeping upon her face. She quickly made her way towards the doorway and wrapped her arms tightly around girl in a loving embrace.

"Hey Amara!" she exclaimed with a soft giggle. She leaned back and suddenly frowned, crystalline blue eyes staring upon the dark bruise on the girl's face.

"What happened?"

"I'll tell you later."

"Serena!" the young blonde turned her head towards her teacher questioningly. Ms. Bloomberg stood from her seat and came around her desk to gather some paperwork.

"Please don't forget to give your father that letter."

"Yes Ms. Bloomberg." replied Serena as her frown deepened. She then turned back towards Amara and began to head out of the classroom, bidding the teacher a farewell as she did so. The duo made their way down the now quiet hallways, making their way to the school exit, and soon off the property.

Amara buried her hands deeply into the pockets of her slacks and bowed her head. "Seiya and his brothers were picking on me again and Seiya punched me in the eye on the playground." Amara stated suddenly, then frowned at the memory and traced her finger tips along her bruise lightly before continuing.

"He only hit me because his brothers were holding me back." A smirk and a dark look flashed in her eyes. "but I got him back; I cornered him in the bathroom and knocked his tooth out."

Serena couldn't help the smile that came across her face, she really didn't like Seiya, especially since he always picked on Amara because of the way she liked to dress. Amara shifted her eyes down to her younger sister questioningly.

"What's up with that letter the teacher wants you to give to Dad?"

"I've been sleeping in class and missing homework."

"You giving him the letter?"

"Do I ever give him the letters?" Amara snickered at her sister, licking her lips and looking up at the bright blue sky. Serena looked up at the taller blonde as she wrapped her arms around herself, a sudden chill creeping up her form.

"What are you going to tell daddy?"

Amara flinched, shifting her eyes to the ground. "I was hoping I could dodge him. It's Friday, he's usually gone till Sunday night...I'm sure my black eye will be barely visible by then."

Serena grinned as if the weight of the world had been lifted off her shoulders. "It's Friday…"

Amara flashed her little sister a grin as she wrapped an arm around the girl's shoulders. "The whole weekend to ourselves! We…"

Amara suddenly paused, standing frozen in her spot. Serena arched a brow in confusion as her sister clutched her shoulder tightly. She raised her head and looked up at her ready to ask what was wrong, until she saw the fear etched across the girl's face. Serena then turned her head toward what Amara was staring at and time seemed to have frozen as she spotted her father's car sitting in the driveway of their home.

"What is he doing here?" whispered Serena.

Amara released her hold on her sister and chewed upon her bottom lip. "I don't know." She stared at the car, her mind racing a mile a minute. Her instincts were telling her she was in danger and to run, but she couldn't…her damned legs wouldn't obey the simple command. She turned her head and looked down at her sister as the smaller blonde laced her fingers with her own, tears welling up in those large blue eyes of hers.

"I'm scared." Amara clenched her jaw and tightened her grip upon her sister's hand, trying to force down her own fear that was bubbling inside her.

"I won't let him hurt you."

Serena swallowed the lump that formed in her throat as she nodded numbly. She closed her eyes for a moment as she tried to steady her racing heart beat. She reopened her eyes and looked upon her sister who now held a determined look on her face.

"The quicker we do this, the better." replied Amara as she began leading them towards their house. Their pace was slow as they were both trying to prolong the inevitable. Now standing upon the door steps, they both gulped as Amara began to reach for the door knob. Serena suddenly began to take a few steps back, causing Amara to halt in her actions. The short haired blonde looked towards her younger sister who now had tears trailing from her eyes and was shaking her head.

"I don't want to go." Amara sighed heavily; hell she didn't want to go in there either, but what choice did she have?

"Sere…" Amara was interrupted as the front door was thrown open. She whipped her head around and her green eyes were fixated on the tall burly man that was her father; Wallace Tenoh. He stood about 6'2, dirty blonde hair that reached his shoulders and emerald green eyes that were glossy and blood shot red. He was adorned in a black beater, revealing massive muscles and wore a pair of dark grey sweat pants.

He sneered at his children, upper lip curled up in disgust and before either of the girls could react, their father reached out and snatched the both of them up by the hair. He yanked them inside the house, slamming the door shut by kicking it closed. He slammed the two children into the wall and ignored their cries of pain, looking them both hard in the face before his attention shifted towards his eldest child.

"Where'd you get that?"

"Get what?" questioned a dumbfounded Amara, causing her father to growl and ram her head into the wall.

"Don't play fucking stupid! Who did that to your face?" he barked, ramming her head into the wall with each word he said, gripping the girl's hair all the more tighter. Amara now had tears flowing down her face as she couldn't hold them back any longer.

"Seiya did it." Apparently he didn't like the answer because he rammed her head into the wall once more, cracking the material in the process.

"You let that little shit do that?" growled the man, unconsciously gripping his hold on his other daughter as well. Amara hissed as she could feel some of her hair coming out the top of her head from her father's steel like grip.

"His two brothers were holding me back!," she cried out.

"She knocked out Seiya's tooth though Daddy," budded in Serena, trying to help her sister out. Though this action earned a hard back handed slap across the face, causing the child to crumple to the ground cradling her now bloody nose.

"Was I fucking talking to you?!" shouted Wallace and in return Serena shook her head, tears welling up in her eyes.

"No sir."

"Then shut the fuck up!" he glared down at her. "Besides I just received a call from your teacher…you're next." he turned his attention back towards the child at hand as he felt her move towards her little sister. He yanked her back in place, slamming her back up against the wall.

"Where the hell do you think you're going? I'm not done with you yet." He gave her a sickening smile, eyes darkening cruelly before Amara's eyes, perspiration trickling down the side of his face. He pulled her from the wall and dragged her into the kitchen by the hair. Once he was in the said room, he shoved the child from him and watched as she fell and slid across the black and white tiled floor.

"You should of knocked out all of that little fucker's teeth!" ranted Wallace as he made his way to the broom closet and pulled out a wooden broom and gripped it tightly in his hands.

"If you quit acting like a boy, maybe you wouldn't get picked on." He continued, making his way back to the short haired blonde and struck the girl across the back as she attempted to rise from the floor. Amara cried out as she felt excruciating pain come across her back, as the wooden broom mercilessly abused her; curling up into tight ball for some form of protection.

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Serena began to climb to her feet as her father started to kick Amara upon her exposed back, laughing in merriment at the child's grunts of pain. Serena looked down at the coffee table eyeing the syringes, burned up metal spoons and razor blades. She whirled her head to her father as realization dawned upon her; her father was high off his rocker and if she didn't do something now, she may loose her sister.

She took several steps towards the kitchen. "Daddy! Stop it!"

The man stopped his ruthless attack and stared upon his youngest child with rage confused eyes. He blinked a few times, tacking several awkward steps towards her. He then growled lowly in his throat as he gripped the broom handle all the more tightly.

"I thought I told you to go to the store Ellen." Serena cocked a brow confused., taking a step back from her father.

"Daddy…it's me…Serena…Mommy isn't here."

"Why the fuck aren't you at the store Ellen?" Without warning, Wallace stood before Serena and came down hard with the broom handle against the girl's upper thigh. Serena screamed out in pain, clutching her thigh and dropped down to one knee, just in time for the wooden handle to come across the side of her head swiftly. The impact nearly caused Serena to leave the ground and she fell heavily to the floor below her with a pitiful moan.

Her father dropped down and straddled her waist, leaning in close, cupping the child's face in his large calloused hands. Blood trailed down the side of Serena face, as her eyes kept rolling to the back of her head. Wallace slapped the child across the face to gain her attention, and as Serena's eyes slowly locked upon his, the older man's eyes suddenly filled with tears.

"Why must you disobey me Ellen…do you think I like hurting you?!" he shouted as he began to shake the girl roughly by the shoulders. Serena desperately tried to clear her hazy mind, but the overwhelming sensation to sleep was taking over…that is until she felt a rough chapped set of lips upon her soft delicate ones. On instinct she began to fight off the offending lips and when the person parted from her, her eyes widened in horror as she realized it was her father.

The man stared down at her with a smirk, as he licked his lips. "Want to play hard to get I see." he murmured huskily as he grabbed his daughter's flailing hands and pinned them above her head.

Tears of fear welled up in the child's eyes as she violently fought against her father. "Daddy its me! Stop it please!" she cried. She suddenly cringed as she felt her father caress the side of her face and slowly down her chest. She began to cry harder as she felt her father's hand trail against her inner thigh beneath the black skirt of her school uniform.

"Stop fighting me Ellen, I know you want this." He leaned down and trailed sloppy wet kisses down Serena's tear stained cheeks snf began to unbuttoned the child's blouse. He ignored the girl's pleas as she begged him to stop; trailing kisses down to the side of her neck, hands roaming her young body.

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Amara groaned and rolled onto her aching back, placing a hand to her throbbing head. She turned towards the living room upon hearing her sister pleading to their father and slowly sat up, fighting off the dizziness that swarmed her noggin. She scowled upon the man as she saw him straddling and touching her sister in a way he wasn't suppose to and started to stand to her feet. She limped her way into the room and took a hold of a lamp that sat beside the couch and gripped the object firmly in both hands.

She walked up behind Wallace and held the lamp over his form and without hesitation brought the object crashing down onto her father's head. Wallace let out a started yelp as the lamp shattered against the back of his skull, causing him to release his youngest daughter and grab the back of his head which was now gushing with blood. With a low drawled out moan, he rolled off of his daughter and onto the floor with a heavy thud.

Amara quickly dropped down to her knees pulling her trembling sister into her arms. "We have to get out of here!" The short haired blonde began to help her sister to her feet when she was snatched up by the back of her neck and was brought face to face with her father whom was now seething in anger.

"You fucking bitch!" He clenched his hand into a tight fist giving Amara a mind blowing punch to the face. The blonde's head lolled back as she had blacked out for a moment; she rolled her head back towards her father and coughed deeply as blood and her two front teeth landed at her father's feet.

"I will make you regret that." he sneered, taking his tongue and licking away the blood that trailed down the corner of Amara's mouth. With a fierce grip on the back of the child's neck, he began leading them down the hallway.

Jumping to her feet, Serena ran up to her father and began pounding on his back to stop him. The man paused in mid stride and spun on his heels and snatched his youngest up by the throat and raised her off the ground. Without warning he brought her close to his face and glared at her heatedly before tossing her across the room effortlessly and then turned away from her and continued down his path; Amara screaming and clawing at his arm relentlessly.

Serena crashed on top of the coffee table, the bulky furniture breaking to pieces upon impact. The child cried out as the razor blades cut at her skin and syringes stuck in her flesh. As fast as she could she climbed off the crushed table, tearing out the syringes that were embedded into her skin and pulled out a razor blade that had been wedged into her shoulder.

She clutched at her wounded shoulder, half lidded eyes staring upon the direction her father had gone in a little discombobulated. She snapped out of her dazed like state when she heard Amara's scream that shook her to the core. She limped her way down the dark hallway and stood before her father's bedroom door where Amara's screams were more frequent and urgent.

With a deep breath and a moment of silent encouragement, Serena threw the door open and nearly gasped at what she saw. Amara's clothes were scattered about the room as well as her father's and the man had her sister pinned beneath his massive body, one hand over her mouth to silence her screams, his other punching away at her face Seiya had abused only a few hours before. The young blonde felt tears well up in her eyes as she heard her sister's mumbled anguished cries of pain.

Unable to take anymore of this, Serena rushed to her father's closet. With much difficulty she climbed up a few shelves and took a hold of a shoe box. Climbing back down with the box she tore the lid off and revealed a black revolver that her father kept loaded. Taking a hold of the hand gun, Serena shakily held it up to her father's exposed back.

"D…D…Daddy stop it!"

Wallace paused in mid thrust and turned towards his youngest child with a sneer before his features quickly transformed into that of shock. He slowly rose himself off of his daughter he had just violated in the worst possible way and pulled up his sweat pants that hung around his ankles.

"Give me the gun."

Serena shook her head and took a small step back, going deeper into the closet and trying her damnedest to stop her hands from shaking. "No."

Wallace growled and clenched his hands into tight fists. He started to lunge towards the girl when the petite blonde pulled the trigger and a loud bang rung out. Wallace stood stock still till he lowered his eyes to his abdomen and the small hole that was oozing with blood. Placing his hand over the wound, he shifted his eyes back on to his youngest, silently falling to his knees, then flat on his back, eyes falling shut.

Serena dropped the gun and placed her hands to her ears as tears welled up in her eyes. She began to shake her head as she sunk down to the floor and broke down into heart wrenching sobs, eyes locked onto her father's form.

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Amara was stuck in her own stupor as she watched her father fall to the ground as if in slow motion. Her eyes shifted upon her sister who was in a middle of a mental break down. With a sniffle, she wiped away her tears with her forearms and slid off the bed with shaky legs, despite her body screaming at her in pain. She slowly made her way around the room and gathered her clothing and took a moment to place them on.

Once she was fully clothed, she crawled her way into the closet and sat beside her sister whom has not yet acknowledged her presence. Amara pulled her sister into a tight hug and let the blonde bury her face into her chest and cry for all she was worth.

After a few moments Amara leaned in close to the girl's ear. "We have to go." she murmured.

Serena pulled back from her sister, blue meeting green. "I didn't mean it…I really didn't."

Amara gave a small smile as her eyes shifted to her father. "I know you didn't Sere." she shifted her eyes back to her sister. "This isn't your fault." The tomboy slowly stood to her feet and heavily leaned up against the closet door frame. She reached out a hand for her sister to take, in which she did and she pulled Serena to her feet.

"Come on, we really need to get out of here."

Serena furrowed her brows, trying to rub the tears from her eyes. "Where are we going to go?"

"I don't know…anywhere but here." Serena nodded as Amara slung her arm around her shoulders for leverage. The duo slowly made their way towards the bedroom's exit, when Amara suddenly paused in her steps before Wallace. She bent down and rummaged through the man's pockets and pulled out a wallet and stashed it into her pocket.

"Amara…what are you doing?!"

"We need money; doesn't look like he can do anything with it." muttered the tomboy.

Serena chewed on her bottom lip as she began to tear up once again. "You think he's dead?"

Amara shrugged her shoulders. "I hope so…besides he isn't moving, so I would think so…"

"_If he isn't I don't want to be here when he wakes up." _thought the blonde silently to herself.

Serena chocked on a sob and let off a loud wail. "I didn't mean to kill him…I just wanted him to stop!"

Amara grabbed her sister firmly by the shoulders and gave her a rough shake. "Listen to me, forget him Sere! Look what he did to us…if you didn't do what you did then we would be just like mom…dead! Do you want to be like mom?"

Serena slowly shook her head and sniffled. "No…"

"Alright then…this never happened. Lets just get out of here and forget about all of this. Besides…he's probably burning in hell as we speak and we're finally free Sere…like we always wanted to be."

Serena blinked away her tears and let a small smile grace her flushed face. "We're free..."

Amara smiled softly . "Yeah…free…now lets go."

"I think we need to clean ourselves up first." mumbled Serena.

"We'll find somewhere to clean up, lets just get out of here."

Serena chewed on her bottom lip once again for a moment and than made her way to her father's beside table. She grabbed a hold of a picture frame before making her over to her sister, where they both helped each other walk down the hall and soon out of the house with out giving the home they've known all of their lives a second thought.

Author: So, tell me what you think and review please!!!!


	2. B1: Chapter 1

Author: OMG! Thanks so much for the reviews!!!

Disclaimer: Don't own Sm!

Serena closed the door quietly behind her and Amara and than clung onto her sister tightly. They both silently walked down the steps and began heading down the sidewalk towards town. The young blonde furrowed her brows as she snuck a peek at her sister's emotionless face in wonderment. How could she be so cold and nonchalant right now? They've been beaten severely, their father was more than likely dead, they were homeless… what the hell were they suppose to do?

She suddenly shivered as an aching throb began to pulse in her head. She swallowed deeply to pass off the wave of nausea that began to settle in the pit of her stomach and looked about her surroundings, noticing that they had already reached town. Serena nervously looked back towards her sister as she spotted people staring and whispering about them.

"People are starting to stare."

Amara growled lowly in her throat. "Let them."

Serena furrowed her brows with a small frown. "I'm hungry and tired…I really wouldn't mind cleaning up a bit."

Amara glared at the ground as she realized she was feeling the same, but she really didn't want to stop. She didn't want to risk being found by their father, if he was alive that is. She shifted her eyes to her younger sister's weary face and decided that they did need to rest…if only for a minute. Chewing on her bottom lip she scanned her surroundings and spotted a small café up ahead.

"We can stop at that café up there." replied Amara, pointing the place out. Serena shifted her eyes towards the direction with a smile of relief forming upon her face. She rubbed her belly when it grumbled and felt the beginning stages of a blush tinting her cheeks.

"I'm so hungry."

"Me too." admitted Amara as she grasped the door handle to the entrance of the café and pulled it open. They both stepped inside and the pair gave a small nervous smile as they watched the greeter's smiling face morph into surprise, then settle into deep concern. The short brunette made her way towards the children and kneeled down before them.

"Oh my God, are you alright?" questioned the young woman. Serena shrunk away from her and hid behind Amara, clutching upon the girl's shirt tightly. The short haired blonde sighed and took the leadership roll with a nod of her head.

"Yes, we need to use the bathroom." Amara flashed her a grin revealing her two missing front teeth, the rest of her pearly whites painted in rich crimson.

The brunette grimaced and slowly nodded her head, pointing behind her. "Straight back, first door on the left."

"Thank you." whispered Serena shyly, before hiding her self behind her sister's larger form once more. The greeter watched as the two began heading off towards their destination with a deep frown upon her face. She quickly stood from her kneeling position and made her way towards the kitchen to prepare the two girls something to eat.

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The Tenoh sisters dragged their way tiredly into the bathroom and over to the sink. Serena tucked her picture frame she had a tight grasp on in the back waist band of her skirt and covered it up with her shirt before resting her elbows heavily onto the countertop with her eyes squeezed tightly shut and her hands massaging her temples. Amara leaned against the counter top and stared upon her battered face with a frown. Her left eyes was nearly swollen shut from her father landing a few good punches in the eye in his futile effort to stop her screams. Her lips were severely swollen, both bottom and upper lip busted open and bleeding. She suddenly flashed her teeth and nearly gasped at the damage that was done; blood flowing down the side of her chin and dripping to the collar of her shirt. She clenched her hands into a tight fists as heated eyes settled onto her sister whom was still massaging her temples.

"Are you okay?" Amara asked worriedly.

Serena swallowed deeply "Yeah…headache."

She slowly opened her eyes and felt tears well up as she scanned over her appearance in the mirror. Half of her face was covered in blood from the 2" gash on the side of her head, her nose swollen and blood trickling from it as well. She traced trembling fingertips along the gash and flinched in pain.

"Come on….we can at least clean our faces." muttered Amara, turning on the water in the sink and began to splash it upon her face. Serena stared upon her reflection for a few more moments and than slowly nodded her head at the statement before she too began to clean her face that was caked in red.

Amara raised her head after spitting out a mouth full of water and than looked down at her disheveled clothing. She tried to straighten them up as best as she could, then looked towards her sister, eyeing the blood stains decorating her white blouse. She frowned knowing full well they couldn't clean those stains out and had to make do with what they had.

"Lets hurry up and get something to eat. We need to find some place to go before the sun sets."

"Okay." Serena turned off the water and cleaned off her face with a paper towel. She straightened her blouse and gave her sister a lop sided grin, wrapping her arms around her sister's waist and allowing Amara to wrap an arm around her shoulder. Amara suddenly leaned heavily against her sister as her knees buckled and Serena tightened her hold, nearly falling over herself.

"Geeze Amara!"

Amara blushed. "Sorry…my knees just went out on me."

Serena straightened herself and her sister out and rested her eyes upon the older blonde with a look of worry. Amara's faced was contorted in pain as her jaws were locked together and her breathing was labored. Serena tightened her hold upon her when Amara doubled over in pain and let off a strangled grunt.

"What's the matter? Are you okay?"

Amara clenched her eyes tight and nodded her head as the pain in her pelvic area slowly diminished. "I'm okay…"

Blue eyes stared upon the tomboy doubtfully. "Are you sure?"

"Really…I just need …to sit down." Serena bit on her bottom lip for a fraction of a second before she helped straighten her sister once again and they both headed out of the bathroom together.

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Serena and Amara were meet with the greeter whom they had spoken to earlier waiting for them and the brunette smiled down at them warmly, showing them towards the table that had two plates decorated with a burger, fries and a soft drink sitting beside each plate.

"I figured you may be hungry and made you both something to eat."

Serena grinned up at the lady, all the shyness from earlier fading. "Wow! Thanks!"

Amara eyed the food and than the woman. "You didn't have to do that."

"I know, but I wanted to." the brunette smiled and bowed before them. "Now, if you need anything I will be over there." with that the greeter left.

Serena looked at the hot meal, grin appearing on her face as she took a seat at the table; Amara taking a seat across from her. Without uttering a word, Serena dug into her food, tearing into the burger and wolfing down fries as if she has never eaten before. Amara shook her head at her sister's eating habits and looked down at her own plate of food. She really wanted to tear into the food like her sister, but her mouth was hurting so bad…but she needed to eat! With a quick lick of the lips the sandy blond took a hold of her burger and tore a small chunk of it off and placed it in her mouth. She slowly chewed, trying to ignore the pain in her mouth and concentrate on how good the food was.

The short haired blonde rested her eyes on her younger sister and started to tell her to slow down before she choked on her food, but she spotted the greeter on the telephone eyeing them from the corner of her eye. When they both made eye contact, the woman turned from blonde as if to shield herself from her. Amara frowned and began to slowly slide herself off of her seat, getting a really bad vibe all of a sudden. She then shifted her eyes back onto her sister with a slight look of worry.

"We need to go."

Serena frowned, not at all happy with the demand. "I just started eating!" she whined.

"I know but we have to go Sere…"

The 2nd grader glared at her sister, "Why?"

"I think that lady just called someone."

"She can't make a phone call?"

Amara rolled her eyes with a deep sigh, wanting to yank the girl from her seat. "No…I think she called someone about us!"

Serena stiffened and looked upon the lady who was still on the phone conversing rather animatedly. The young blonde gripped the handle on her fork as she felt her heart thumping rapidly in her chest in panic; frantic thoughts taunting her mind and vivid images flashing before her very eyes.

"I don't want to go back." she whispered brokenly, her voice seemingly far away.

"We're not!" Amara took a hold of her sister's hand and pulled her out of her seat, trying the shrug off the eerie feeling she felt when she stared her sister in the eyes.

"Come on, we can slip out the door while her back is turned." Serena nodded and started to follow after her sister but turned, quickly making her way back to the table, snatching the two burgers off the plates and following after her oblivious sister. The duo quietly crept passed the greeter unnoticed and slipped out the door like stealth assassins.

Serena grinned once she was out of the restaurant and pulled out the two burgers, taking a few bites out of her half eaten sandwich. She handed her sister her own barely eaten one as Amara stared at her stunned, which quickly turned into a smirk as she took a hold of her burger with a soft giggle.

"I cant believe you snagged those!"

"Well…I couldn't bare for them to go to waste. "

"You can be so weird sometimes!"

Serena stuck out her tongue and then took a humongous bite from her hamburger, humming happily. Amara lead them both towards an alley way near the café where she leaned up against a building and ate her burger in small portions. She then gave Serena the rest of it when she couldn't bare the pain in her mouth any longer and resided to licking her fingers clean.

Loud sirens wrung out and both Amara and Serena ducked their heads around the building, watching as two police cars pulled up in front of the café they were just in. The greeter from earlier stepped out of the restaurant and began talking to the two policemen.

Serena scowled at the woman, "She did tell on us." Amara nodded, a scowl upon her face as well. She sighed deeply and turned away from the scene, sliding down the wall till she sat on the concrete ground below her. She drew her knees up to her chest and folded her arms upon them, then laid her head upon her folded arms.

Serena finished off the last bite of her burger and began to lick her fingers clean as she watched the police officers return to their vehicles and the greeter went back inside the restaurant. Once the police officers drove off, Serena finally turned away and much like her sister, slid down the wall and took a seat on the ground.

Serena leaned into her sister and wrapped her arms around her waist to gain some warmth. "Are we going to sleep out here?" Amara shifted and looked up at the sky and seen that sun was setting and the moon was beginning to take its place. She soon nodded and rested her head upon her sister's shoulder.

"I'm tired."

Serena rested her head upon her sister's and closed her eyes. "Me too."

Amara wrapped her arms around Serena and pulled her closer. "We can sleep for a little bit and then we can start moving again."

"Mm…hmm." drawled off the young blonde as her breathing steadied and was fast asleep in a matter of seconds. Amara ran her fingers through her hair as her eyelids began to feel heavy and drowsiness began to overtake her senses.

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A middle aged woman was standing in the window of a clothing store with her brows knitted together. She had long royal purple hair pulled back in a high bun and silver gray eyes that were staring upon the two children dozing off in the alley way. She began to nibble on her bottom lip and then suddenly placed the bundle of clothing she had in her hands down on a shelf, making a quick retreat out of the door.

She looked both ways before darting across the street and quietly made her way towards the alley she had been staring at before. She spotted the two blonde headed children huddled together and sleeping peacefully amongst themselves. She kneeled down before them and placed a hand on the short haired blonde's shoulder and gave a light shake.

The woman gasped as the child slowly raised her head and she was able to see the damage done to the child's face. Amara drowsily opened her eyes and looked up and stiffened seeing someone standing over her. She tightened her grip upon her sister as she her eyes focused on the woman before her. She quickly shifter her eyes to the side and spotted a rod like object not to far from her…if she had to she would bash that woman upside the head with the rod with out a second thought.

The woman seen the object as well and gave a long sigh, watching the child before her plotting a devious plan. "I'm not going to hurt you."

Amara scowled, making eye contact with the woman. "What do you want?"

The woman looked surprised for a moment as she realized this child's voice was too high pitched to be a boy's. "Well…it looks you may need somewhere to sleep tonight."

"We're fine."

The woman knitted her brows. "It's not safe to stay out here."

"Why do you care…look lady…we can handle ourselves." snapped Amara, as she let a hand lay upon her swollen eye as it began to throb painfully. Tears of frustration formed in the corner of her eyes as she violently shivered, a gust of wind blowing past them.

"I know you wouldn't mind a warm bath and a nice bed to sleep in."

Amara sniffled and shifted her eyes to her sister who was trembling against her side, clutching onto her as tightly as she could. She licked her swollen lips with a cringe before shifting her eyes upon the woman whom was waiting on her answer. She stared the woman hard in the face not sensing any malice from her and decided that she may be trustworthy.

"Only for tonight."

The woman smiled and gave a curt nod. "Okay." Amara leaned over and began to shake her sister's shoulder only to receive a grunt in reply. The woman shifted over towards the smaller blonde and scooped her up in her arms.

"It's alright, I'll take her." She stood up, holding the sleeping Serena close to her before shifting her eyes to Amara.

"Can you walk?" Amara slowly nodded, rising slowly to her feet and leaning heavily against the woman with a slight blush. The woman smiled not understanding why she was embarrassed, but shrugged it off anyways.

"My car isn't far."

Amara nodded, not really hearing what was said, for her head was pounding and her ears were wringing. All she cared about was lying down and letting sleep take her away from this agonizing pain.

Author: That's all for now ^_^ please review!


	3. B1: Chapter 2

Author: Thanks so much for the reviews you guys ^_^ really appreciate it and keep em coming!

Disclaimer: Don't own Sm.

The woman was relieved when she finally reached her car and shuffled the sleeping Serena in her arms to pull out her keys from her purse. She leaned over and unlocked the door with Amara lying half asleep against her, arms wrapped tightly around the woman's waist, head resting against her side. She sighed heavily as she placed Serena in the back seat and settled Amara in the front passenger seat.

Once the children were situated, the woman got in her vehicle and quickly started it up and drove off; desperate to get home as soon as possible. She chewed on her bottom lip, giving Amara sideways glances, her mind racing a mile a minute.

'_What the hell happened to these kids!?!' _her mind screamed. Her jaw soon clenched as Amara curled up into a ball with a whimper and began to tremble. Her mind began to wonder if someone had done this to them or if they were in some sort of accident; she hoped it was the later because her mind just couldn't grasp how someone could do this…beat a child to this existent! Although, as much as she wanted to believe that, she knew deep down in her very soul…someone did this and it was someone close to them.

She turned away from Amara, tears welling up in her eyes. She had so many questions she wanted to ask them it was maddening. The woman furrowed her brows as she wondered what the hell her husband was going to think about this. She sighed deeply and gripped her hands upon the steering wheel, staring at the road before her till she got home.

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The woman chewed her bottom lip once again as she felt her heart pounding in her chest, pulling up into her driveway of her home. She watched as the front porch lights turned on and her husband stepped out the door, climbing down the steps. He held the most aggravated look upon his face, making his way around the car and straight to his wife's window. He squatted down and looked at her through the car door window with a frown upon his face and tapped the glass with his index finger.

When she rolled down the window, the man stared his wife hard in the face for a moment before snapping. "Where the hell have you been!?! I've been calling you…" his voice trailed off as he spotted Amara's trembling form in the passenger seat and he slowly shifted his eyes back on to his wife.

"Luna…what the hell is this?"

"I found them like this Artemis…they need some help."

"Them? Their's more than one? What the hell Luna; why did you bring them here?"

"We're going to help them."

"We can't help them!"

"I'm pretty damn sure we can give them something to eat, a warm bath, and a bed to sleep in! Don't you dare tell me you're going to turn these kids away!" snapped Luna as she glared heatedly at her husband. Artemis sighed deeply, running a hand through his long white tresses, silver-grey eyes staring down at the ground.

"Look…I just don't want any issues to occur with them staying here…we need to call social services."

"That can be done in the morning for Christ's sake!"

Artemis clenched his jaw, then suddenly nodded his head. "Okay…"

Luna smiled. "Okay…now you get the one in the front and I'll get the one in the back." Her husband nodded and went to retrieve Amara as Luna stepped out of the car and went to scoop Serena up. Artemis suddenly turned to Luna with an arched brow.

"That's it right?"

Luna giggled. "Yes Artie, now will you get inside." The white haired man chuckled as he lead them towards the house, stepping inside and closing the door after his wife.

"What are we going to do with them?"

Luna furrowed her brows. "Well they both need a bath and some clothing…we can try and…" she was cut off when she heard a door creaking open. She looked down the hallway and spotted her daughter rubbing the sleep from her eyes and walking towards them. She had shoulder length wavy grey hair and silver grey eyes; adorned in a white teddy bear imprinted ankle length night gown.

"Diana…honey, go back to bed."

Diana stopped a few paces before her mother than fully opened her droopy eyes to see what her mother was holding. She furrowed her brows in confusion wondering why her mother was carrying someone and took a small step to the side to see this unknown person's face; suddenly gasping in surprise.

"Serena?"

Artemis snapped his head towards his daughter startled. "You know her?"

"Yeah, Serena Tenoh. She's in Ms. Bloomberg's class with me. What happened to her and why is she with you guys?"

Artemis ignored his daughter's questions and looked down at the child he was holding. "Do you know who this is?"

Diana broke her eyes away from Serena and turned to the other blonde. "What happened to her eye?!" she gasped.

"Dee…focus…wait her? He's a she?" exclaimed Artemis baffled.

Diana giggled, "Yes she…she's Serena's big sister Amara."

The 7 year old cocked her head to the side. "So what happened to them?"

Luna sighed heavily, "I was in that clothing store across the street from that little café downtown. Well I happened to see them walking down the street and they were all beat up and bloody." Luna shivered at the mental picture of Serena's face caked in blood. Shrugging it off, she continued. "They went into the café and maybe 20 or so minutes later they came running out and ducked into an alleyway. The police came and went and the two fell asleep in the alley…that's when I went and got them."

Luna then turned to her daughter. "Honey, will you go and get something for them to wear." The child nodded and bounded off down the hallway.

Luna than turned to her husband. "Let's bring them into the bathroom." with that she turned and went down the hallway her daughter had disappeared down and soon made her way into the bathroom. She flicked on the lights, revealing a rather large bathroom with a massive Jacuzzi tub, a shower on each side, two small rooms that concealed toilets and a long counter top made of marble with two sinks within them. Luna walked over to the counter and sat Serena down upon it, biting back a smile as she pulled Serena back, and the girl's head lolled back; out cold.

"Serena."

"Hn."

"I need you to sit up for me honey, come on."

Serena wearily opened her bright blue eyes, seemingly staring straight through the woman as she leaned back against the mirror behind her and stared at Luna with hooded eyes. Luna looked at her for a moment, making sure Serena wasn't going to fall out on her and turned away, moving her way towards the bath tub just as Artemis settled Amara down on the counter top as well.

Once seated, Amara sat with her elbows resting upon her knees, chin on the palms of her hands, staring blankly ahead of her. Artemis looked upon the two girls a little freaked out by their blank stares and shifted his eyes upon his wife whom was preparing the bath water.

Diana suddenly bounded into the room with two sets of clothes held in her arms. "Got the clothes Mom!"

"Thank you; just set them down." replied Luna as she turned off the water and stood to her feet. She turned her eyes onto her daughter and placed her hands on her hips. "Diana, it's time for bed."

"But Mom!" cried the child.

"No buts young lady; to your room!" Diana sulked but complied and exited the bathroom without another word. Once the child was gone, Luna made her way to Serena and helped the half conscious blonde sit up and began to unbutton the child's white blouse. Artemis followed suit and proceeded to do that same with Amara, who had leaned back against the mirror much like her sister had done. He suddenly waved his hand in front of the blondes face, arching a brow when she didn't acknowledge the movement. He sighed than suddenly shrugged, beginning to unfasten the buttons to the girl's shirt.

With the last button undone, Artemis pulled Amara's shirt off and stood back deeply startled, eyeing the heavy bruising along the child's arms and chest and when he looked into the mirror, he could see even more heavy bruising along the child's back. He was in the middle of trying to decipher what the child was struck with when he suddenly shifted his head towards his wife as she let off a soft gasp, eyeing Serena's wounds. The girl's back had blotches of black and blue bruises, gashes and prick marks here and there. She eyed the deep gash upon the girl's shoulder and on closer inspection, her attention was drawn to two things.

Luna bent forward and looked down at Serena's side and eyed something that was sticking out of the girl's skin. Grasping a hold of the unknown object between her fingertips, she gave a quick jerk, freeing the object from the child's flesh. Serena let off a small whimper, before falling silent once more. Luna stood erect and looked at the object with narrowed eyes.

"It's a razor blade." Luna shifted her eyes upon her husband who too held a look of shock upon his face. Luna suddenly shook her head exasperated and placed the bloodied razor blade on the counter and leaned back over, taking a hold of the second object that had caught her attention.

She pulled the picture frame from the back of Serena's skirt waist band and held the portrait up to her face. The picture was a family portrait, so she assumed, which had a picture of Serena grinning up at the camera, sitting on the lap of a woman who the young blonde favored. She had long golden blond hair held up into an odd hairstyle of two odangos on either side of her head and bright blue eyes, smiling happily into the camera, arms wrapped around her daughter's shoulders. Next stood a tall burly man with blonde shoulder length hair and piercing green eyes. He held a smirk upon his handsome face, with one hand wresting upon his wife's shoulder, while he held Amara who shared her father's smirk.

Luna smiled softly at the picture and placed the picture frame down on the counter as well. "They look like a happy family, I wonder what happened…"

Artemis sighed as he began unbuckling Amara's pants. "There's no telling…the more I'm seeing the less I want to know." he muttered. He suddenly jumped startled when a hand grabbed his own firmly and he looked up to see Amara's eyes locked onto his.

"What are you doing?" she whispered harshly.

"I..uh…" Artemis stared upon the short haired blonde completely at a loss for words until he felt Luna place a hand on his shoulder.

"He was just helping you get undress so you can take a bath, sweetie." replied Luna. Amara shifted cold eyes upon Luna and they slightly softened upon recognition. She then frowned, glaring upon Artemis once more.

"I don't want him in here."

"Oh…he won't."

"**I. Don't. Want. Him. In. Here!**" she snapped, growling out each word and pushing Artemis's hands away from her pant's buckle, drawing her knees up to her chest and glaring upon the man darkly.

Artemis took a step away from the child and rubbed the back of his neck nervously. "I'm going to go and check on Diana." Before Luna could utter a word, Artemis was out of the door, closing it silently behind him. The middle aged woman shifted her eyes upon Amara who had once again gone silent and was currently rocking slowly back and forth, staring off blankly.

Turning away from her, Luna went back to her task at hand by undressing Serena, then scooped her up and placed the child in the warm bath tub. She then made her way towards Amara and stood before the child, resting a hand upon the girl's shoulder.

"Let me help you."

Amara stared upon Luna for a moment and than slowly nodded her head, causing Luna to smile, helping the child down from the counter top. She waited patiently as Amara finished unbuckling her pants and suddenly furrowed her brows upon seeing blood staining the child's underwear and inner thighs. She felt her stomach tighten painfully and she clenched her hands into tight fists, watching Amara enter the massive bathtub and settle herself down beside her sister. Luna silently gathered the children's clothing and turned towards the duo who were slowly but surely cleaning themselves.

"I'll be right back. I'm going to set your clothes in the washing machine." She received a grunt from Amara and silence from Serena as she quietly made her way out of the bathroom, silently closing the door behind her. She pressed her back up against the wooden door, leaning her head back against it, closing her eyes and sighing heavily.

Her eyes suddenly snapped open startled when a hand was placed gently on her shoulder and she smiled up at her husband, sinking into his warm comforting embrace. Before she knew it she had tears falling down her cheeks as her husband rubbed her back soothingly

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Amara helped Serena stand to her feet as they both climbed out of the bathtub. Amara toweled them both off and she quickly dressed herself in a t-shirt and pajama bottoms that had been laid out for her. She silently helped Serena get dressed, the blonde still in her dazed like state. Once she was done, Serena pressed her head against her sister's chest and wrapped her arms languidly around her waist tiredly. Luna took this moment to enter the room and smiled upon the duo. She quickly made her way over to Serena and picked the child up in her arms and looked down at Amara questioningly.

"Do you want something to eat?" Amara frowned and rubbed her aching belly that was crying out for food; although her mouth was throbbing badly. She shifted her eyes to the floor with a shake of the head.

"My mouth hurts too bad to chew."

Luna looked upon the child with concern. "What's wrong with your mouth?" Amara looked up at her and flashed her teeth, revealing her front two missing teeth and swollen gums. Luna couldn't hold back her grimace and forced a smile upon her face hoping they were her baby teeth.

"I can make you some soup."

"Okay…" Amara gave a Luna a side ways glance and a small smile before turning away from her and shifting her eyes back onto the floor. Luna took that moment to lead them out of the room and down the brightly lit hallway and headed towards another room. She turned on the lights upon entry and entered the bedroom that was pretty large with a king size bed, a dresser with a vanity mirror, and side tables on either side for the bed with a lamp.

Luna walked over to the bed and pulled back the fresh blankets and sheets and lay Serena down than covered her up. Once the small blonde was nessled in the massive bed, Luna turned to Amara and began leading the child out of the room, turning off the bedroom lights and closing the door behind her. They both walked down the hallway in silence and entered the kitchen where Amara took a seat at the kitchen table and Luna made her way over to the stove.

Amara watched Luna silently, drumming her fingertips along the table top. Luna began to hum softly pulling out the necessary ingredients and mixed the contents together in a bowl before placing them in the heated pot on the stove. When finished, she placed the homemade soup into a bowl and placed it down on the table before Amara.

"Do you want something to drink?"

"Water." came the quiet reply. Luna nodded and went to retrieve the drink as Amara looked down at the hot bowl of chicken noodle soup. She took a hold of her spoon and stirred the contents, than scooped up a spoon full and blew on it to cool it down. When she thought it was safe, she engulfed the soup and hummed merrily at the good taste. Luna smiled as she placed the glass of ice cold water before the child and took a seat at the kitchen table.

The pair stayed silent as Amara contined to eat and Luna watched her every movement; questions once again forming in her mind. When the child was finished, she leaned back in her seat satisfied and cocked her head to the side and stared upon Luna.

"I can tell you want to ask me something."

Luna opened her mouth and than silently closed it, staring upon Amara a bit startled. She chewed her bottom lip and shifted her eyes upon her laced hands that rested on the kitchen table. With a small sigh she finally began to speak.

"What happened?" Amara sat up in her seat, lacing her fingers upon the kitchen table as well, intense green eyes boring into Luna's. The woman watched as the child was having an inner conflict with herself, deciding whether or not this woman was trustworthy or not for her to reveal her deepest darkest secrets.

Luna sighed heavily. "You don't have to talk about it if you don't want to."

Amara shifted her eyes away from Luna and rested them upon the kitchen table, making her decision. "Dad started to change…he and Mom started to argue all the time. Not too long after that, he started hitting her. When she died two years ago he started to turn on us; it started with a smack here and there…but it started to get worse."

Amara feel silent, drawing her knees back up to her chest and shifted tear filled eyes upon Luna. "We ran away."

Luna furrowed her brows, knowing full well Amara left out a lot of what has been going on, but she knew she was told the basics. With a small smile, the woman stood to her feet and made her way towards Amara and helped the child out of her seat.

"Come on, time for bed." Amara nodded and let Luna take a hold of her hand and lead her to the room where Serena was sleeping. Once in the room, Luna pulled back the blankets to allow Amara to climb under them and covered her up.

She watched silently as Serena began to shift in the bed as if having a bad dream before she rolled over and nestled her head in the crook of Amara's neck and wrap her arms tightly around her like a security blanket. Luna took this time to leave and bid Amara goodnight; even though she didn't receive an answer, she knew the child had heard her and left the room with a close of the door. Running a hand through her purple bangs, Luna began to head to her own bedroom so she could get a good night's sleep.

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Artemis yawned and stretched his tight muscles, rolling over in his bed to see his wife sitting up against the head board of their bed, staring off blankly a head of her. The man frowned and placed a hand upon his wife's thigh, on which she didn't acknowledge.

"Honey…what's wrong?"

Luna shifted strained eyes upon her husband, heavily bags beneath her eyes. "I don't want to turn them in."

Artemis frowned. "That is not an option."

"Why not? Why can't we keep them?"

"They're not ours to claim Luna!"

Luna let warm tears well up in her eyes. "This is not fair…they've been through so much."

Artemis sat up on the bed and pulled his wife into a tight embrace, feeling his heart crack from her pain filled voice. "I know it isn't. I'm sure they will find a nice home and a family that will love them."

"I hope you're right." whispered Luna brokenly.

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Serena shot up in the bed as she looked around her surroundings with confused drowsy eyes. She shifted her eyes down to her sister and softly nudged her awake. The blonde murmured something under her breath and rolled onto her stomach, cracking her eyes open. Serena bent down, bringing her face a mere few inches from her sister's.

"Where are we?" she questioned, voice slightly wavering from panic.

Amara opened her eyes more fully and began to sit up. "Some lady took us in last night…I didn't even catch her name."

Serena nodded, calming down a bit. "You're eye looks better."

Amara smirked, ruffling her sister's bangs affectionately. "It surely feels better." One of Serena's five senses picked up as she began to smell the aroma of food cooking, her tummy beginning to grumble.

"That smells so good." Serena began to climb out of the bed and limped her way towards the bedroom door.

"Where are you going?" questioned Amara, becoming alarmed and following after her sister.

"Where ever the food is." chirped the 7 year old and opened the door where she could hear soft chatter and the clanking of pots. Serena turned towards Amara and waved her forward.

"Come on! I want to see who they are and what they're cooking!" Amara giggled at her sister's antics and followed after her when she exited the room. Upon entering the kitchen they spotted Artemis hanging up the phone, Luna placing breakfast essentials on plates, and Dianawith her back towards them sitting at the kitchen table, waiting patiently for her meal. Luna turned with a plate in each hand and smiled when she spotted the two girls standing in the entry way of the kitchen.

"Good morning girls, I hope you're hungry."

Serena grinned, eyes locked onto the plate of food within the woman's hand. "I sure am!" Luna grinned at the girl's bubbly behavior, retrieving the rest of the plates and placed them on the table just as Diana turned around and smiled upon the duo.

"Hi guys!"

Serena's eyes widened. "Diana? What are you doing here?"

The child giggled. "I live here silly! These are my parents Luna and Artemis." Serena smiled at them both as Amara glared at Artemis, taking a couple steps away from the man. Luna seen the movement and the look and quickly ushered the children at the table.

"Have a seat and dig in." She didn't have to tell Serena twice, for the girl dug into her food hungrily and Luna and Artemis stared upon her in astonishment. The two adults looked at each other with the same question running in their minds; how the hell can someone so small eat like that?!

Shaking themselves out of their stupor, they took a seat at the kitchen table along with Amara who had decided to sit between Serena and Diana, slowly eating her food, cold eyes lockked onto Artemis. The moment was held in silence and soon all the food was eaten and Luna cleaned off the table with the help of Diana. Artemis sat in his seat twiddling his thumbs trying his damnedest to not acknowledge Amara's intense heated gaze. He couldn't blame the child because Luna had told him of the blood staining the child's legs and underwear; and her hostile actions towards him leads him to believe that she was indeed raped.

He snapped out of his depressing thoughts as his head turned towards the front door of his home upon hearing a soft knock. He watched as Amara's and Serena's forms stiffened and the duo stared upon each other with fear in their eyes. Forcing his eyes away from them, Artemis stood from his seat and began heading to the door as Amara snapped her head towards Luna.

"Who is that?" Luna handed her last dish to her daughter so she could towel it off and turned towards Amara, just know noticing the tension that had build in the room.

"Artemis called Social Services this morning, they're here to help you." Amara jumped out of her seat as Serena began to grip the sleeves of her pants with trembling hands.

"He what!?" Amara grabbed a hold of her sister's arm and pulled her from her seat, as they both began to take small cautious steps back. Luna took a step towards them in confusion as Diana watched the scene silently from her spot at the kitchen sink.

"I don't understand…they're going to help you." replied Luna desperately.

"No they're not! They're going to take us back to him! I'm not going back!" Amara growled nearly delirious. Before Luna could say another word, Amara bolted down the hallway, dragging her sister behind her by the arm.

Luna snapped out of her stupor when she heard the bedroom door slam closed and quickly made her way down the hallway. She grabbed the knob of the door and began to twist, realizing that it was locked. Panic shot through her veins as she began to pound on the door frantically.

Artemis suddenly appeared behind his wife and placed a hand on her shoulder. "What's going on?"

"I told them what was going on and they freaked and locked themselves into the bedroom." Artemis frowned and took Luna's place at the door and began pounding on it. Luna than took notice to the woman that was standing in the hallway with them. She was very tall and slender, black green streaked hair pulled up in a half bun, and dark crimson all knowing eyes. She was in a dark blue business suit that consisted of a white blouse, blue button down jacket, and matching skirt. She reached out a hand and smiled at Luna.

"I'm Setsuna Meioh."

Luna took a hold of the woman's firm grip. "Luna."

The purpled haired woman suddenly frowned as she began to hear a noise she recognized from the bedroom. She turned to her husband with furrowed brows.

"I think they're climbing out of the window Artie!" Artemis growled and stood back attempting to kick the door down.

"I will go tell the officer outside to go around back to see if they're jumping out of the window." replied Setsuna as she excused her self and made her way outside.

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Amara locked the bedroom door after her sister and began to pace back and forth, running her small hands through her disheveled blond locks. She looked towards her sister and involuntarily shivered watching as her sister's eyes dull before her and the blonde began to mumble under her breath claiming that she didn't want to go back…go back to all the pain and suffering….going back to the countless nights of wishing to die.

Amara clenched her jaw; she be damned if she was going back to that house! She made her way over the window and unlocked it and pushed it open. She stuck her head out of the window and seen it was a good 3 foot drop to the ground. She climbed into the window's ledge and turned to her sister.

"Sere, come on!"

Serena shifted her eyes to Amara and furrowed her brows. "What are you doing?"

"We have to jump and make a break for it!" The pair snapped their heads towards the door upon hearing Artemis kicking; the door's hinges shaking at the abuse. Amara turned back to her sister and frantically waved her forward.

"We have to get out of here!" Amara turned in the window and looked down at the drop with a gulp. She took a deep breath and slowly let it out before pushing her self off the window's ledge. She landed upon the ground a little ungracefully and turned to look up at Serena who was staring at her in shook. Serena nervously chewed on her bottom lip and climbed into the window and looked down, scared out of her mind.

"I'm scared…" she whimpered.

"Just jump, it's not that bad! I'll catch you." called Amara.

Serena gulped, as her legs began to tremble and her heart thumped heavily against her ribcage. "Okay…on a count of 3."

Amara nodded and began to count with her. "1...2...Ahhhhhh!"

"Serena!" cried Amara, watching in horror as Artemis snatched Serena from the window and pulled her back inside. Quickly spinning on her heels, Amara began to head back around the house when she crashed into something solid. Falling flat on her back she stared up at the tall, blonde haired police officer who reached down and snatched her up from the floor and held her in strong massive arms. Amara began to scream, kick and thrash about with all her might, trying to escape from the officer's grip.

The officer held Amara firmly and made his way around the house just as Artemis was carrying out a very distraught Serena; Luna and Setsuna following after him. Setsuna made her way towards the officer and smiled at Amara who glared at her heatedly.

"Make him let me go!" she snapped.

Setsuna shook her head. "I can't do that." She turned away from her and began to make her way to her vehicle and unlocked the doors. She turned to the two men who held onto the children and waved them forward.

"You can place them in the back seat." The two men nodded and made their way to the car. Amara began to fight more frantically as Serena seemed to have given up hope and relaxed in Artemis's grip. He placed Serena in the car and buckled her in, pausing for a moment to look at her painstaking expression. He sighed heavily and ruffled her bangs.

"You know this is for the better…I'm sorry if you don't understand it right now."

Serena didn't say a word or even look him in the face. Instead she shifted her eyes to Luna who was staring back at her with tear filled eyes, able to read everyone of the emotions within the woman's eyes like an open book. She gave Luna a soft smile, realizing the woman did not want any part in this and turned away from her as Artemis stood and closed the door.

The police officer was having one hell of a time getting Amara into the back of the vehicle and when he did, he quickly closed the door before the child attempted to escape. She looked at the officer's badge reading Officer Furuhata before the man disappeared from her view as he slammed the door closed. Amara growled and grabbed a hold of the door handle and tried to open the door, but it refused to budge.

"Stupid thing is safety locked!" she growled, before leaning back in her seat and kicking the driver's seat in front of her out of frustration. After a few good kicks she looked back out into the window and glared at Luna's tear stained face.

"I trusted you!" she screamed and Luna heard her loud and clear, turning away from the blonde and stepping into the house.

Serena shifted her eyes onto her pissed off sister with a small frown. "Don't blame her."

Amara growled shifting angered eyes onto the blonde. "She told on us!"

Serena shook her head. "No she didn't, her husband did. She did not want no part in this."

Amara steadied her breathing and knew better than to question her sister any further, for she knew that her sister had this amazing 6th sense to read people. She sighed deeply, watching from the corner of her eyes as Serena drew her knees up into her chest and tears welling up in her eyes. Out of concern, Amara placed a hand on the girl's shoulder.

"What's the matter?"

"Are you mad at me?"

Amara arched a brow, startled by the question. "Why would I be mad at you?"

"Because I didn't jump fast enough and got us caught."

Amara frowned upon her sister; she really hated the way she always downed herself. "I'm not mad…and I don't blame you." Amara turned away from her and began to look out of the window. "Just forget about it."

Serena sighed than suddenly nodded, resting her head against the glass of the window and stared at nothing outside of it. Setsuna suddenly opened the driver side door and looked at the extremely quiet girls with an arched brow as neither one of them made an attempt to look at her. She took a moment to scrutinized their injuries with a shake of the head and took a seat, starting up the car and driving off without a word.

Author: Don't forget to hit that review button ^_^ you know you want to!


	4. B1: Chapter 3

Author: Thanks so much for the reviews! I also re-edited the earlier chapters and inserted scene dividers where they needed to be. Well, hope you enjoy the chapter ^_~

Disclaimer: Don't own Sm

Setsuna turned off the radio and shifted her eyes to the rear view mirror to look at the girls in the back seat. It unnerved her that they hadn't spoken a word or even try to sneak a peak at her…just staring blankly out of the window in their own little world. With a sigh, she shifted her car into park and turned off the vehicle, taking the keys out of the ignition and placing them in her purse. She opened the door and stepped out of the vehicle, closing the door behind her and turning towards Officer Furuhata's police car. She waited as the man stepped out of his vehicle and began to make his way towards her.

"Ready to get them out?" he questioned, running a hand through his short blond locks.

"Yep." she muttered, adjusting the straps of her purse on her shoulder. "You grab the feisty one and I'll get the other."

Officer Furuhata pouted, "Why do I get the feisty one?"

"Because you're bigger, stronger, and got a gun."

"I'll let you hold the gun."

"She's all yours big guy."

"She?" the officer's eyes widened in disbelief.

Setsuna smiled, making her way around the car to stand before Serena's car door. "I was surprised too when I seen her, but truth be told…he's a she."

The Officer arched a brow momentarily before taking a hold of the door handle, "Round 2." he muttered, taking a deep breath as he opened the door. He was quite surprised that Amara was slouched back in her seat staring up at him with a frown upon her face instead of lashing out at him and trying to tear his head off.

He watched as she unbuckled her seatbelt and he kneeled down before her. "You want me to carry you?"

"I can walk." she murmured scooting away from him.

Confused by her actions, he took a couple steps back from the car. "Well…come on then."

Amara shifted her eyes towards her sister, seeing that the blonde was unbuckling her own seatbelt and was climbing out of the car towards Setsuna. The tomboy sighed deeply, scooting back over to the open door and stepping out of the vehicle. When the officer reached out to take a hold of her hand, she turned away from him with a snarl.

"Don't touch me." she growled and made her way towards Setsuna to stand beside Serena. The officer frowned running a hand through his hair. He trailed his way behind Setsuna and the two girls, eyes narrowed upon Amara's back. He suddenly began to remember the conversations he had with Setsuna before retrieving the girls. She had told him all she had known from the couple that had taken the girls in, but he was taken aback by seeing their actual injuries with his own eyes. Being a father himself, he knew that a child needed discipline…but he could never bring himself to hurt his son like this…ever!

He sighed heavily, shifting his eyes towards the white building they were walking up to. He waited patiently as Setsuna stood in front of the door and pulled out a card from her purse. She swiped it down in a machine beside the door and the locks were unlocked as the lights flashed green on the contraption. She opened the door and ushered the children inside, the officer trailing in after her.

Amara and Serena looked around them in curiosity as they appeared to be walking through an office, with white walls and bright lighting. There were cubicles aligned neatly around the room and many people occupying them. They soon came up to another door that Setsuna unlocked with a key and the woman flicked on the lights revealing a small room. The room as well had white walls with a long square table in the middle of the room and a few chairs around it. Setsuna ushered the two children to a seat as the officer stood in the corner of the room, propped up against the wall.

"I'll be right back, I need to get some paperwork." replied Setsuna as she stepped away from the table and left the room without a word. Amara turned to her sister and the two of them locked eyes for a moment and Serena suddenly nodded her head and shifted her eyes to the floor. The smaller blonde knew what that look meant and that was to keep quiet and let her big sister handle everything. The short haired blonde than turned to the officer who was looking at them puzzled, for he had seen the nod.

Amara glared at him just as Setsuna stepped back into the room with a manila folder in her hands. She took a seat at the table across from the girls and gave them a warm smile. Serena flashed her a half smile as Amara scowled at the woman, crossing her arms over her chest and slouching back in her seat. Setsuna suddenly cleared her throat, placing the manila folder down on the table and opening it up.

"My name is Setsuna Meioh and I will be your social worker." she replied, not taking her eyes off of the contents in her manila folder. She took out a sheet of paper from the folder and laid it down, pulling out a pen from her purse.

"Now, what are your names?" she replied, now looking upon the two girls.

"Bite me!" snapped Amara, looking at the older woman defiantly.

Setsuna smirked, taking a hold of her pen and began to write. "You must be Amara." She then shifted her eyes onto the younger blonde whose head was downcast and was currently twiddling her thumbs together. "…and you must be Serena."

Neither girl acknowledged their names being mentioned and Setsuna smiled, reaching down for her purse once more. Amara furrowed her brows and Serena raised her head as the woman placed a black leather wallet and a picture frame down on the table. Setsuna took a hold of the picture frame and admired it for a moment.

"Looks like a happy family." she replied, placing the picture frame down once again and retrieved the wallet. She opened it up and her eyes settled down on the drivers license of Wallace H. Tenoh. Her eyes than wandered over to the nice amount of $100's and $50's within the wallet and she suddenly placed it down beside the picture frame.

"Is you're father Wallace H. Tenoh?" questioned Setsuna.

"Why?" asked Amara, her frown deepening. "You trying to make us go back?"

Setsuna lost her friendly smile and frowned slightly. "Take you back? Is that what you think I'm trying to do?"

"Why else would you be asking about him?" she questioned logically, Serena nodding in agreement with her.

Setsuna sighed and leaned back in her seat. "You have it all wrong my dear. We're trying to keep you away from him, but we can't help you if you don't tell me what's going on."

Amara chewed her bottom lip and chanced a look at her sister who was silently studying Setsuna intently. The smaller blonde suddenly turned towards her big sister and gave a small nod of approval. Amara nodded in return and turned towards Setsuna, cocking her head slightly to the side.

"You promise we're not going back?"

Setsuna nodded with a smile. "I'll even pinky swear it."

A real smile suddenly formed upon the child's face as she reached her pinky out for Setsuna to take. "Okay."

Setsuna in return leaned forward and the two hooked pinkies in a silent oath and Amara suddenly sat back in her seat. The short haired blonde sat silently for a moment, staring down at the floor as if lost in thought. She suddenly took a deep breath and exhaled slowly, shifting green eyes upon Setsuna.

"Yes, he's our dad." Setsuna nodded, writing the information down on the sheet of paper she pulled out earlier. She then took a moment to look at the address on the license and wrote it down too. Once finished she leaned back, tapping the end of her pen against her chin, eyeing both girls closely.

"Where is your father?" Amara swallowed deeply, clenching her jaw as Serena stiffened and suddenly drew her knees up to her chest and wrapped her arms around her legs. Setsuna frowned, biting the end of her pen with narrowed eyes.

Amara cleared her throat, adjusting herself in her seat. "He's at home."

Setsuna's frown deepened, finding it odd how the child spoke her words. "I see…is he the one that has been hurting you?"

Amara nodded. "Yes." Setsuna sat up in her seat and wrote down some more information on the sheet of paper. Lying the pen down, she laced her fingers together and laid her hands down on top of the table.

"Where is your mother?" Amara's heart began to thump wildly in her chest as she gripped the arm rests of her chair with her hands.

"She died two years ago."

"How did she die?" Amara furrowed her brows as disturbing flashbacks invaded her mind of her father in a drugged out rage… her mother on the floor beaten and crying…her father grabbing the cordless phone…the blood splashing across her and Serena's faces...

"In an accident."

"What kind of accident?" prodded Setsuna. They were hiding something and it was tearing Setsuna apart that these questions were tormenting these kids…but a job was a job and she had a duty to perform. Amara's composure began to harden as these questions were bringing back things that she didn't want to remember, things that she had stored away in the deepest darkest crevices of her mind a long time ago.

"A car accident." she replied coldly. Setsuna arched a brow at the sudden tone of voice and the thick tension that suddenly appeared. She shifted her crimson eyes upon Serena who had her face buried in her knees, shoulders trembling. She then turned and looked at Officer Furuhata, both locking eyes, realizing that this was a lot more serious than they had thought.

Setsuna suddenly stood from her seat and began to head towards the door. "We will be back, A.J. come with me."

The officer snapped out of his reverie and followed after the woman, taking one more quick glance at the two girls. With a deep sigh, he closed the door quietly behind him and turned to Setsuna as she ran slender fingers through her bangs.

"They're leaving out things and they're terrified." replied Setsuna, beginning to pace before A.J.

"Their actions explains everything…we've just stepped into something serious and their's no turning back now." replied A.J.

"I wouldn't dare turn my back on these girls now!"

A.J smiled, placing a hand upon the woman's shoulder. "I know you wouldn't." He paused, sighing deeply and becoming serious. "From what I'm seeing, their father is a lunatic and if he's where they say he is, then the girls need to get out of town."

Setsuna nodded at his logic. "Yes, there's an orphanage on the outskirts of the Juuban district. They can stay there until I found them a foster home."

"Good, I want to investigate on this Tenoh guy. I also want to check their house to see if he's there. I want to get this man behind bars as soon as possible."

"Alright then, I'll get the girls ready so I can take them to the hospital. They look like they may have some serious injuries and need to be checked out. I can get their living arrangements done when I get to the hospital."

A.J. nodded, turning and began to walk down the hallway. "I'll call you if I find anything."

"Okay." Replied Setsuna as A.J. walked off and she made her way back into the room.

-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-

Once A.J. and Setsuna stepped out of the room, Amara snapped her head towards her sister as the younger blonde slowly raised her own head from her knees. She turned towards her sister, tears flowing down her pale cheeks. Amara sighed and leaned over, wiping away her sister's tears and giving her a small smile.

"Look…if they find Dad and start asking about that wound…I did it okay?"

Serena frowned, narrowing her eyes upon her sister. "But I did it…"

"I know Serena…but just say that I did it okay?"

"You can't always protect me Amara."

"Yes I can and I will…just do as I say."

"Okay…I'll do it."

"Good." Amara smiled and ruffled her sister's bangs. "I hope we really aren't going back."

"Me too." whispered Serena, wiping the tears from her face with her forearm. The duo turned towards the door as Setsuna stepped into the room. The woman smiled upon the children and made her way to the table, gathering up her papers and placing them back in the manila folder.

"Come on girls."

"Where are we going?" questioned Amara.

"First I am taking you to a doctor so you can get checked out. I also found you a place to stay until I find you a foster home." replied Setsuna as she gathered all the contents from the table and placed them in her purse.

Serena turned to Amara with a slight shrug. "That sounds good to me."

The short haired blond chewed on her bottom lip before sliding out of her seat. "Okay, let's go."

Setsuna held back a grin, as both girls made their way over to her and took a hold of her hand. "Alright, let's go." she replied, leading both girls out of the room.

-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-

Wallace grunted, eyes slowly creeping open. He slowly began to sit up, placing a hand on top of his wounded abdomen, his head pounding painfully in his skull. He looked around his dark room as he remembered what had happened and he clenched a hand into a tight fist.

"Those fucking little bitches," he growled, slowly but surely climbing to his feet. He slowly made his way out of his bedroom to be met with the darkness of the hallway.

"AMARA! SERENA!" he shouted, only receiving silence in return.

"Where the fuck are you!?" he screamed, walking into their bedroom and not seeing them in sight. With a scowl, he made his way down the hallway and scanned both the living room and kitchen…still no sign of his daughters' presence within the house.

"Shit…" he growled, walking over to the linen closet and taking a hold of a few towels.

"I swear to God…if they said anything…fuck!" He ranted, making his way into the kitchen where he took his keys from the counter.

"I have to get out of here." He muttered as he silently made his way out of his house and into his vehicle where he took a moment to press a towel against his bleeding abdomen. He then took a hold of the other towel he held and wrapped it around his head to suppress the bleeding from a gash at the back if his head. He soon placed his keys into the ignition and gunned up his vehicle up and pulled out of the driveway.

"You think you can escape me?!" he growled out to no one in particular, blood shot red eyes staring at the road before him as he drove away from his home.

"You just wait…when I find you I will show you the true meaning of pain!"

-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-

Setsuna pulled up to the orphanage that she had planned on taking the girls to and sighed wearily, looking out into the darkening sky from the windsheild. She looked in the rear view mirror and stared upon Serena's sleeping form with a small smile. The poor child was knocked out from a heavy dosage of medication for her wounds. Her thoughts suddenly turned towards Amara who was still in the hospital undergoing major surgery on her eye.

The doctors claimed that the child would go blind if she didn't undergo the procedure, so Setsuna had no choice but to succumb to their wishes. Her mind than lingered on what the doctors had told her about Amara, that the girl had been raped and that she had some severe damages. Setsuna's eyes watered as she remembered what the doctors had told her next…that Amara could never have children.

Sniffling, Setsuna stepped out of her vehicle and made her way to the back of her car to retrieve Serena. Once she had the sleeping child in her arms, she closed the door and made her way towards the building. She smiled at the woman that greeted her at the door way and was escorted inside. The woman suddenly turned towards Setsuna questioningly.

"I thought there was two of them?"

"Yes, Amara is still in the hospital and will probably be there for a few days."

The woman nodded, "I see." They came before a door which the woman opened, flicking on the lights, revealing a massive room with beds aligning the walls; children sleeping peacefully within them.

"You can place her here." replied the woman, showing Setsuna a vacant bed. Setsuna nodded and brought the sleeping child to the bed and laid her down in it and covered her up within the blankets. She stared upon the blonde for a few moments before turning towards the woman as she rummaged through her purse.

"I have some prescription medicine for Serena; I will give them to you and then I will take my leave." she replied as she pulled out the paper bag the held Serena's prescription medicine and handed it to the woman.

"I will keep in touch." replied the social worker as she turned on her heels and made her way out of the room.

-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-

Setsuna sighed heavily, turning off her vehicle and stepping out. She made her way up the driveway of her home, going through the front door and stepping inside. She was met with darkness as usual and she locked the door behind her and made her way towards to the steps that lead to her bedroom. Standing by the door of her bedroom, she could hear the TV and she opened the door, spotting her lover lying on the bed.

Stepping into the room and closing the door behind her, her lover sat up in the bed with worried violet eyes. Running a hand through her shoulder length black hair, she leaned over and turned on one of the many lamps that decorated the room. She pulled back the blankets and beckoned Setsuna forward.

Setsuna nodded and began stripping down to her undergarments, placing them down on top of her mahogany dresser. She made her way over to the bed and crawled under the covers, snuggling up against her lover. The raven haired woman pulled out the tie that held Setsuna's hair up and let her tresses fall down her shoulders. She pulled Setsuna closer to her and began running her fingers through her lover's hair.

"Not a good day today?"

Setsuna sighed. "It wasn't bad…but it wasn't good either."

"What do you mean?"

"I was assigned to another case on two girls today. Hotaru…I've never seen a child beaten so badly in my entire career…in my life." She paused, tightening her hold around her lover's waist. "The older one was raped and the doctor came to me and told me that she had severe damages…that she's unable to have children now."

Hotaru gasped, "Oh my…"

Setsuna nodded. "I told the doctor that she would be told when she gets older."

"I understand why you did that, but she does have the right to know."

"I know that and she will know in due time."

"Well, who is behind the abuse?"

"Their father."

"He's behind bars now though…right?"

Setsuna shook her head. "No…he's disappeared. A.J. called me while I was at the hospital with the girls and told me all that he has found out so far. He went to the house and no one was there, but the house was in shambles and he found traces of blood and a gun. A.J. did some research on him and found out that their father used to be a big time drug trafficker. One of his deals went bad one day and he lost all of his deals and became a washed up cocaine and heroine addict. Two years ago his wife was in a car accident and there was never an investigation done on the accident."

"Are you serious?"

"Very…I need you to help me with this."

Hotaru arched a brow, sitting up slightly in the bed. "How can I help?"

"The girls are in need of therapist and I think you should be it?"

"I don't know Sets."

"You're the best in all of Japan, especially with children. If anyone can get them to talk its you."

"You think they know something."

"I know that they know something."

Hotaru sighed and nodded her head. "Okay…I'm only doing this for you."

Setsuna smiled, leaning up and kissing her lover upon the lips. "Thank you."

"Of course my love." murmured Hotaru, leaning over to turn off the lamp. She then straddled her lover's waist, pinning her arms above her head. "Now on to much better things."

Author: ^_^ That's all for now! Hope you enjoyed and please review!


	5. B1: Chapter 4

Author: Thanks so much for the reviews you guys!

Disclaimer: Don't own Sm

Serena shifted in her sleep, thrashing out wildly, a light sheen of sweat glistening on her forehead. She suddenly shot up in her bed with a small cry, hands clutching at her throat, fear embedded in her crystalline blue eyes. Taking a few shaky deep breaths, she ran a trembling hand through her sweat soaked bangs.

"It was just a dream." she whispered, willing her rapid heart beat to slow its pace. She suddenly furrowed her brows and looked around her.

"Where am I…Amara?" called out Serena, not seeing her sister in sight. She frowned deeply as she felt fear creeping up the back of her neck, looking about the dark room frantically. A sudden noise struck her attention, her body stiffening as she tried to listen for it again. When the noise came about again, the small blonde crawled out of the bed.

"What was that?" she whispered, falling silent again to hear the noise once more. When it came she began walking down the rows of beds, the noise becoming louder and more frequent. As she got closer to the noise, she realized that it sounded like someone was crying. Becoming worried, she quickened her pace and stood before the bed at the very end of the spacious room.

She came around the bed as the person began shifting in their sleep. She stood beside the person and was able to see that it was a boy with unruly short ebony hair and an ace bandage wrapped tightly around his head. She leaned over, placing a hand on his shoulder and gave him a light shake. He jumped up startled, grabbing Serena by the shoulders and slamming her down on the bed, hovering over her and staring down at her with dazed wild eyes.

His labored breathing hitched in his throat as his dark midnight blue eyes stared into terrified crystalline blue. He slowly released his painfully tight grasp upon the girl's shoulders and slowly pulled away from her, running a hand through his disheveled locks. Serena cautiously sat up and scooted back a few paces from him, crossing her arms over her chest and rubbing her hands over her throbbing shoulders with a frown.

"What was that about?" snapped Serena.

The boy turned to the blonde with cold eyes. "Why were you standing over me?"

"I was trying to wake you!"

"For what!?"

"You were crying in your sleep!"

"Wh…" the boy paused, rubbing at his moist cheeks. He frowned deeply, rubbing the tears between his finger tips.

"I'm sorry." he suddenly whispered, an awkward silence following afterwards.

Serena shifted her eyes to the bed, nervously nibbling on her bottom lip. "Why were you crying?"

"I don't know." he snapped, scratching at the back of his head in slight irritation.

Serena frowned, "Well…why are you here?"

The boy turned and shifted his eyes upon the curious blonde with a frown of his own. Why was she still here and not off to bed? What right did she have to be asking him all of these questions? Although…there was something quite intriguing about her and he was rather curious to learn a little about her too, but there was something about her frown that made him want to push her buttons.

"You have some nerve asking me all of these questions." The boy inwardly smirked as he watched the blonde's jaw tighten and a fire spark in her eyes.

"I think I have every right to ask questions with you slamming me down on the bed like you're crazy!"

"I didn't mean it!"

"Well you did it none the less."

"You are the most aggravating person I have ever met!"

"Oh! And you're not aggravating!?"

"Grrr! Go to bed!"

"Not until you answer my questions!"

"Fine!"

"Fine!"

"Fine!"

"Get to talking then!"

"Grr!!!" growled the boy as he clenched his hands into tight fists; this girl is impossible! He glared at her as he tried to calm himself down by taking slow and steady breaths. He closed his eyes for a moment and took one last deep breath, exhaled and than slowly opened his eyes.

"My family died in a car accident Friday."

Serena gasped, eyes welling up with tears. "I'm sorry!"

The boy nodded. "Yeah…" He was taken a back when the small blonde leaned forward and wrapped her arms around him in a comforting embrace. She pulled away from him and gave him a lop sided smile.

"You at least have good memories to remember them by." The boy bowed his head, his heart constricting painfully in his chest as tears started welling in his eyes; he shook his head.

"No memories."

Serena arched a brow in confusion. "What do you mean?"

"I hit my head in the accident." He replied, pointing at the ace bandage around his head. "The doctor said that I have amnesia"

"Well what do you remember?"

"My name's Darien Chiba…and that I'm 9 years old…that's it…"

"It's going to come back…right?"

"The doctors said it will…but they don't know when." Serena arched a brow a little stunned, never hearing of such a thing. She tilted her head to the side and looked upon Darien.

"There are a lot of things I don't want to remember…but I wouldn't know what to do if I didn't remember my Mom."

Darien scooted himself a little closer to the blonde. "What is she like?"

Serena smiled as she lost herself in some of her most cherished memories. "She was great! She always knew the right thing to say to make me feel better…She used to always make me and my sister these awesome chocolate chip pancakes! She used to always sing and dance in the kitchen while she cooked…I…I miss her."

"She sounds like a nice person." replied Darien, shifting a little uncomfortably as Serena's eyes began to water with tears. "Where is she?"

Serena sighed, wiping the tears from her eyes. "She died two years ago."

"I'm sorry."

"Yeah…" whispered Serena.

"So…whose your sister?" asked Darien, wanting to change the subject upon seeing the blonde's eyes darken.

Serena suddenly perked up. "Oh Amara! She's 9 too…but I don't know where she is. I remember going to the hospital with her and Setsuna…then I woke up here…"

Darien suddenly smiled. "Well she's probably sleeping and you will see her in the morning."

"I guess you're right."

"Well…I told you why I'm here, so why are you here?"

Serena sat up, crossing her legs beneath her. "My daddy is a bad man and me and my sister ran away. Some lady took us in and we stayed the night over there. Her husband called Setsuna and here I am." The young blonde suddenly yawned, stretching slightly.

"You look tired.." murmured Darien as he too tried to stifle a yawn. Serena nodded, rubbing at her drooping eyes. She climbed off the bed, giving Darien a lop sided grin.

"I'm going to bed…talk to you tomorrow?"

Darien nodded with a smile. "Yeah."

Serena giggled and turned, beginning to walk away. "Night!"

"Night," replied Darien before furrowing his brows. "Hey wait!"

Serena paused in mid step, turning to look upon the boy. "Yes?"

"What's you're name?"

The blonde grinned. "Serena."

Darien shared her grin with a nod of his head. "Serena…"

Serena giggled once again and turned away. "Good night Darien."

"Night…" he whispered., navy blue eyes lingering upon the blonde's retreating back. Once she was out of his sight, Darien lay back on his bed, covering himself up with his comforter, a warm smile upon his face; tonight was the night that he wasn't going to have nightmares about plummeting off a cliff by a head on collision…he was going to dream…dream good dreams and wake up with a smile on his face.

-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-

A.J groaned, rolling over in his bed as he heard his cell phone insistently ringing. He snatched the device from his side table, flipping the phone open and bringing it to his ear.

"It's 2 in the morning…what the hell!?" he snapped. There was a moment of silence before A.J's look of irritation turned to that of shock as he sat up quickly in his bed. The sudden movement caused his sleeping wife Laura to shift awake and she slowly say up, looking upon her husband worriedly. Her concern tripled when she saw her husband's eyes welling up with tears.

"Are you sure its him?" whispered A.J.

He sighed heavily. "What about his wife and two boys?"

There was another moment of silence before he spoke again. "Okay…thank you. I will be there first thing in the morning…bye." He hung up the phone and buried his face into the palms of his hands as the tears rolled down his cheeks. Laura leaned forwards, pulling her husband to her chest and rubbed his back soothingly.

"What's wrong?"

A.J. wrapped his arms tightly around his wife. "That collision in the mountains Friday was Donny."

"Oh my God!" cried Laura. Tears welled up in her own eyes as she covered her mouth with a trembling hand. "What about the boys and Mallory…oh my God…Mallory is pregnant, they weren't with him were they?"

A.J shook his head solemnly. "They were with him; Donny was taking his family up to the mountains for Darien's and Talon's 9th birthday. He was supposedly hit head on by another vehicle and was pushed off the mountain…no witnesses and no leads…just skid marks to prove there was another vehicle involved."

"Please tell me they're alright."

A.J shook his head once again "Darien is the only survivor and he's at the orphanage with a head injury. His grandfather is away on a business trip, but he has been informed of what has happened and will take custody of Darien within the next few days."

"That poor boy." whispered Laura.

A.J. shook his head. "I can't believe this…I just spoke with Donny Thursday…we were talking about having another party for Darien and Talon at dad's arcade…Christ…and Andrew…" A.J. shifted his eyes towards his wife. "How do you think Andy is going to take this? Darien and Talon are his best friends."

Laura shook her head not knowing what to say. Her son would be devastated, he's lost Talon and may now never see Darien again when he's in the custody of his grandfather. She sighed heavily, hugging her husband more tightly.

"I don't know…I will talk to him in the morning. Do you think that Andy can go and see Darien at the orphanage?"

A.J. sighed. "I don't know…Darien's head injury gave him amnesia. All he knows is his name and age."

"He doesn't remember his friends or family…or the accident?"

"No."

Laura sighed deeply, running a hand through her brown locks. "We will talk about this in the morning…let's get some sleep honey."

A.J nodded, lying back, both he and his wife staring up at the ceiling lost in their own thoughts; neither one of them getting any shut eye that night.

-\-\-\-Next Morning-\-\-\-

Serena groaned as she rolled over, placing a hand on her aching head. She cringed as she opened her eyes to the harsh sunlight and buried her face into her pillow. With a heavy sigh she raised herself from her pillow and slowly opened her eyes. Rubbing the sleep from them, she blearily looked around her until her eyes settled upon the opening bedroom door.

A woman who looked to be in her mid 40s walked into the room holding a tray. She smiled when her dark brown eyes landed on Serena and she made her way over to the weary blonde. She placed the tray down on a side table beside Serena's bed and picked up a small cup that had 3 different pills in them. She handed the small paper cup to the child and gave her a glass of water.

"I am Tassy, please take your medicine." Serena nodded numbly and swallowed the pills one at a time with a sip of water. Once finished she handed the glass and paper cup to the woman whom placed the objects down on the tray and in turn handed the child a sandwich. Serena ate on the bologna sandwich silently as she eyed the woman who had went and sat on the vacant bed to the left of her. Finishing off her food, she suddenly cocked her head to the side.

"Where's my sister?"

Tassy stood from the bed and picked up the tray. "She is still in the hospital. She is fine, just need a few more days."

Serena nodded her head with furrowed brows as Tassy suddenly cleared her throat. "Come along child, you need to get cleaned up so you can go outside with the other children."

The blonde gulped, a sudden nervousness overwhelming her. She tried not to think about being around so many new people at once and hoped that she didn't panic…especially since Amara wasn't here. Sighing deeply, she slipped out of the bed and straightened up her covers and pillow, than followed Tassy out of the room.

-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-

Serena stood in the door way, eyes locked onto the massive amount of children running around in the playground of the orphanage. She nervously chewed on her bottom lip as her heart began to thump wildly in her chest. A bead of perspiration trickled down the side on her face as the palms of her hands became sweaty. Her breathing started to come in short gasps, panic creeping through her veins as something suddenly appeared before her. Taking a startled step back, Serena realized that something was Darien.

The young boy giggled and placed a hand on the blonde's shoulder. "You alright?"

Serena flashed a weak smile with a nod. "Yeah…why wouldn't I be?"

"Well…you looked a little freaked out just now."

The blonde shifted her eyes to the floor, rubbing at the back of her neck. "I get a little freaked out when I'm around crowds and loud noises."

"Oh…" replied Darien before flashing a grin. "I don't think anybody is going to bother you and if they do they'll have to answer to me!"

Serena giggled when he buffed out his chest as if he was the strongest man in the world. He suddenly reached out and took a hold of her hand and pulled her out of the building.

"Come on, we can sit over by that big tree over there." exclaimed Darien as he pulled Serena along with him. As they got closer, Serena looked up at the gigantic tree in child like amazement.

"Wow! It's so big!"

"I know!" gushed Darien, taking a seat at the base of the tree; Serena following in his lead. The pair sat in comfortable silence, staring up at the bright blue sky without a care in the world. Serena shifted her eyes away from the sky and scanned the playground slowly, stopping when they landed upon a boy sitting by himself up against the picket fence. The blonde frowned and turned towards Darien, tapping the boy on his shoulder.

"Who is that boy over there?"

Darien turned towards the direction with an arched brow. "I don't know."

"Hmm…let's go talk to him."

Darien looked upon the blonde with narrowed eyes, wondering why she wanted to talk to him so bad. "What makes you think he wants to talk to us?"

Serena shrugged. "We won't know until we try."

Darien sighed and stood to his feet. "Alright, let's go talk to him then."

Serena grinned and stood to her feet as well. "Cool! Come on!" The small blonde latched a hold of Darien's arms and tugged him along with her. In a matter of seconds they were standing before the boy as he sat pressed up against the fence, knees drawn up to his chest, face buried into his knees.

"Why are you sitting here all by yourself?" questioned Serena. The young boy raised his head revealing grotesque burns from his neck to his chin. He had long shaggy brown hair that hid his eyes from view; he cocked his head to the side with a smile.

"No one wants to talk to me."

"Why not?" questioned Serena as she took a seat beside the boy, Darien sitting on the other side of him.

"Look at me…I'm a monster."

"No you're not!" Serena frowned, placing a hand upon his shoulder. "Don't say things like that."

The boy turned from the blonde and looked down upon his lap. "I can if its true…I hear them whispering about me…" an awkward silence fell afterwards and Serena began to twiddle her thumbs together as she wondered how he had gotten those wounds or at least find out what his name is. Unable to take the silence any longer the blonde decided to question her thoughts but was cut short.

"I'm Chad by the way."

"Serena." grinned the blonde.

"Darien."

Chad nodded with a small smile, than bowed his head once again. "So…I guess you're wondering how I got these wounds, huh?"

"If you feel like talking about it…" replied Serena sincerely, but Chad could tell the blonde really wanted to know.

He shrugged his shoulders. "Sure, whatever." He combed his fingers through his shaggy hair, pulling back his bangs and momentarily revealing navy blue eyes.

"My mom did it…she was always so mad at me…"

_.::Flash Back::._

_Chad was sitting in his bedroom, working on his homework, sprawled out across his bed. He tried to tune out hearing his mother moving about in the hallway outside his door as he felt a sudden uneasiness welling in the pit of his stomach. Although, he really couldn't figure out if he had done anything wrong…the chores were done, he read his bible for three hours, his room was spotless…what was wrong?_

"_CHAD!" he jumped up startled and quickly made his way off the bed and smothered out the creases in his blankets. He stepped out of his bedroom as he heard his mother call upon him again with her loud screeching voice._

_Cringing, he called out. "Yes Mother?"_

"_Come here!" she called out sweetly, causing the boy to pause in his steps. He furrowed his brows not liking her tone of voice…there was something wrong. Swallowing the lump that formed in his throat, he slowly made his way down the hallway and stopped in the door way of the bathroom. His mother stood in the middle of the room, hands behind her back, feet a shoulder length apart, a tight smile on her face._

"_Come in here boy…"_

_Chad gulped and chewed on his bottom lip before taking a couple of steps into the bathroom. "Yes Mother?"_

_His mother's smile broadened, which didn't bring him any form of comfort. "What have I told you about bringing sinful things into my home?"_

_Chad furrowed his brows, not sure of what she was talking about. "What sinful things Mother?"_

_Chad's mother glared down upon the boy as she revealed what was behind her back. His eyes widened as she pulled out three of his comic books he had stashed in the garage. He nervously bit on his bottom lip wondering how in the world she had found those. He felt his eyes narrow as his mother's face twisted into a look that sent shivers of fear up and down his spine._

"_I've told you time and time again not to bring such garbage into this house…" She took a menacing step forward and Chad involuntarily flinched. "God does not like disobedience…you've been a bad boy and shall be punished for your sins."_

_Before the boy could react, his mother had him by the back of the neck and was dragging him towards the bath tub as she was muttering religious versus under her breath. Chad suddenly started fighting back when he felt the hot steam from the bathtub that was filled with boiling hot water. Sweat beaded across his forehead and he frantically pleaded with his mother._

"_I'm sorry! I'll be a good boy!" he screamed, desperately trying to break from his mother grasp._

_His mother frowned, shaking her head. "Sorry isn't good enough." with that said, she clutched the boy by the collar of his shirt and pushed him back, causing the back of his legs to his the tub and fall back towards water. He screamed as he felt the burning water boiling his skin as he tried to thrash his way out. Fortunately, his hands stopped him from being entirely submerged and he kicked frantically at his mother as she held him down, burning herself too. Her eyes were wild and her muttering became louder to the point of shouting, telling God to cleans her son of his evil ways._

_Chad was able to land a fierce kick to her to his mother's abdomen and the woman gave a startled yelp. She released her hold on her son and stumbled a couple of steps back, slipping on a puddle of water and ramming her head on the side of the toilet. Chad took this time to jump out of the tub and he hightailed it out of the bathroom._

_He began to strip off his pants and shirt to relieve some of the burning sensation throughout his body. He looked down at himself mortified at his blistering red flesh and turned sharply when he heard his mother's low drawled out moan. Without a second thought he made a mad dash down the steps and out of the house."_

_.::End Flashback::._

"I ran to the neighbor's house and they called the police and I was rushed to the hospital."

"Where's your mom now?" questioned Darien, completely horrified by the story.

"She went to prison and was stabbed to death by a prisoner."

Serena's widened. "And your dad?"

"He left us when I was four and got remarried and started a new family. He didn't want anything to do with us. When he left, mom told me that it was my fault that he left…that I was a bad boy and that God hated me for my sinful ways…"

"You don't believe that…do you?" asked Darien.

Chad smiled and shook his head. "No…but sometimes I wonder…" There was a moment of silence before he suddenly cleared his throat and leaned back up against the fence. "So what are your stories?"

Darien shrugged. "My parents were killed in a car accident and I can't remember anything."

"My dad hits me and my sister so we ran away, got caught and was brought here…and my mom died 2 years ago."

Chad shook his head. "That's pretty messed up…" he murmured softly.

"Children! Come along, it's snack time!" called out Tassy as she stood in the doorway. Serena jumped to her feet, with a wide grin upon her face.

"You going to eat with us Chad?"

The boy grinned and gave a curt nod. "Yeah!" He jumped to his feet, followed by Darien and they both quickly took off after the running blonde.

-\-\-\-Later That Evening-\-\-\-

A black stretch limousine pulled up in front of the Orphanage and the driver stepped out and walked around to the back door. He opened the door and a man in his early 60s stepped out of the vehicle, wearing a top dollar black business suit, graying black hair neatly cropped upon his head. He firmly grasped his cane with a wrinkled hand and silently made his way into the Orphanage as his driver stood posted up at the limousine.

He stepped into the building, startling Tassy who was listening to the radio and snacking on a Butterfinger candy bar. Rewrapping the candy bar and placing it on the table, she quickly stood to her feet and made her way over to the man.

"Hi! My name is Tassy, what can I do for you sir?"

The man smiled. "I am Dorian Chiba. I am here to get my grandson Darien."

"Oh right this way Mr. Chiba." replied Tassy as she led the man to the bedroom. They entered the room filled with sleeping children and they walked to the very end of the room. Dorian stopped and stood at the end of the bed as Tassy awakened the boy.

"You need to wake up Darien."

The boy slowly sat up and rubbed the sleep from his eyes. "What is it?"

"Your grandfather is here to take you."

"My Grandfather?"

"Yes." replied Dorian as he stepped around the bed and stood before the bed. "Now come along and I'll take you home."

Darien smiled with a nod of his head as he enthusiastically jumped off his bed and began to gather his stuff. He suddenly paused in his actions and stared off down the rows of beds. He turned towards his side table and pulled out a piece of paper and a crayon. He scribbled down a small message and folded it before gathering his things and heading towards door. Before reaching the door, he stopped at Serena's bed and placed the folded up piece of paper on the side table beside her bed.

"See ya Serena…" he whispered, than turned and left the room with Tassy and his Grandfather.

Author: That's all for now, hope you enjoyed! Please Review!


	6. B1: Chapter 5

Author: Thanks so much for the reviews!!!

Disclaimer: Don't own Sm.

Darien sat across from his grandfather in the limousine, his forehead pressed against the cool glass as he felt his grandfather's dark blue eyes on him. The old man was silently scanning the boy deep in thought, hand clenching his cane. His mind still couldn't grasp that his only son was gone…he could not…would not believe that his little boy was gone; gone forever.

A small smile graced his features; Darien's resemblance to Donny was breathtaking. He suddenly frowned thinking of Talon, he and Darien were identical twins. Although the two shared the same features, they had completely opposite personalities. Talon was more like his father; wild, adventurous…a real troublemaker but he was very laid back like his mother. Darien on the other hand was more like his mother; calm, reserved, and nurturing but much like his father he had a fierce protectiveness over his family, when tampered brought a violent rage from the boy.

His eyes soon began to well up with tears as he thought of Mallorie and his unborn granddaughter. She and Donny were so excited that they were going to have a little girl…there was only three more weeks to go before she would have graced the world with her presence. Dorian shifted his eyes from his grandson and turned them onto the window, realizing that they would be home within a few minutes.

He ran a hand through his graying hair as he thought of the funeral arrangements he had to perform in the morning. His eyes shifted upon Darien, wondering how the boy was copping with all of this. Not only did he loose his family in a tragic event but he had no memories to remember all the good times he had spent with his family. How could life be so cruel to the boy, what had he done to deserve such a fate?

The old man cleared his throat as the limousine came to a stop. He heard his driver exit the car and come around to open his door. He turned to Darien and waved him towards the door, in which the boy nodded and exited the car, followed by his grandfather. His midnight blue eyes widened as he stared upon the massive mansion before him.

"You live here?" whispered Darien incredulously.

"We live here." replied Dorian and took a hold of his grandson's hand and escorted the boy towards the door way, the driver following behind them with Darien's belongings. The trio smiled warmly as they were greeted by the butler and maids; Dorian led the boy down the long hallway to his new bedroom. Stopping before a door, Donny opened it and flicked on the lights revealing a massive bedroom. Darien gasped, making his way over to the large bed and flopped down on it.

"This is so big!" exclaimed Darien, scanning all of the belongings in the room.

Dorian smiled. "This was your father's room."

"Really?" whispered Darien, running his hand over the thick comforter on the bed.

"Yes my boy." The old man smiled and took a step closer to Darien. "How about you join an old man to some milk and cookies…maybe I'll tell you some stories about some idiotic things your father had done when he was a boy."

Darien smiled and stood from the bed. "I think I like that idea."

Dorian shared his grandson's smile and ruffled the boy's hair, escorting him out of the bedroom. "Let's go to the kitchen."

-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-

Serena stretched beneath her blankets and slowly sat up, blinking the sleep from her eyes. She looked around her surroundings, remembering that she was in the orphanage. Pulling her blankets back, she rotated her body so that her feet were hanging off the side of the bed. She arched a brow when she spotted a folded up piece of paper on her side table. Taking a hold of it, she opened it up and began to read the crayon written words.

_Dear Serena,_

_I'm sorry I didn't get to say goodbye, but I have a feeling we are going to see each other again. I hope things get better for you and your sister and I hope to see you soon._

_Love,_

_Darien Chiba._

Serena smiled softly and folded the piece of paper up and placed it inside of her side table drawer. She ran her small fingers through her bangs and turned towards Tassy as the woman stepped into the room with a rather large smile upon her face.

"Come on Serena, Ms. Meioh is on her way to take you to the hospital. You're supposed to get your stitches taken out and Amara gets to leave today."

Serena grinned and jumped out of the bed excitedly. "I get to see Amara?"

Tassy nodded. "You sure do!" The woman took a hold of the child's hand and escorted her towards the bathroom so the blonde could wash up.

-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-

The small blonde could hardly conceal her excitement as she waved merrily at the passing by nurses and doctors. The closer she and Setsuna got to Amara's room, the wider Serena's grin became. The Social Worker shook her head at the child's antics and couldn't help the smile that came upon her normally expressionless face.

The young blonde just had her stitches removed from her side, shoulder and forehead and was left with permanent scars. Though, the child didn't care because the only thing that was on her mind was the well-being of her older sister.

Serena squealed excitedly as she spotted her sister's room and released Setsuna's hand before the woman could protest. The child darted off and quickly made her way into the room where Setsuna heard the child shout her sister's name. The woman once again shook her head, shifting her purse upon her shoulder and made her way into the room.

She spotted Serena on the hospital bed, hugging the life out of her older sister who seemed to be stuck in a medicated haze. The short haired blonde looked much better and her eye wasn't swollen anymore; all that was left was a small bandage above her eye.

"Amara."

The short haired blonde shifted her eyes upon Setsuna with an arched brow. "Yes?"

"I have some clothes for you." She closed the room's door behind her and made her way over to the child. Serena scooted herself from her sister's lap and allowed the older blonde to move towards Setsuna.

"Am I leaving today?"

"Yes." replied Setsuna as she pulled Amara's hospital gown over her head and began to dress her in a t-shirt and a pair of jeans.

"Where are we going?"

"To the orphanage!" exclaimed Serena with a wide grin. "You got to meet Chad! He's so cool and I have to tell you about Darien!"

Setsuna silently listen to Serena ramble on about the two boys she had met as she continued to dress Amara. Once finished she escorted the two girls out of the room and soon out of the hospital.

-\-\-\- 2 Months Later-\-\-\-

Setsuna grinned as she walked through the front door of her home. She was hit with the wonderful aroma of her lover cooking dinner for them both in the kitchen. Taking off her jacket and hanging it up, she made her way into the kitchen where she spotted Hotaru at the stove. She had music playing and she was singing along with the music and swaying her hips to the beat.

Setsuna couldn't help the loving smile that came across her face and snuck up behind her and wrapped her arms around her lover's waist. Hotaru jumped startled before leaning back in her lover's embrace as Setsuna placed a light kiss on the raven's cheek.

"You're in a good mood." replied Hotaru with a small sigh as she felt soft lips trailing down her neck.

"I have every right to be."

Hotaru giggled, turning in her lover's arms, violet eyes shining with curiosity. "What are you so happy about?"

"I found the girls a home."

"Ooh! Who are they?"

"Elaine and Ken Tsukino. The couple had decided to become foster parents when they found out that Elaine is unable to have children; they seem like real nice people. I sat and had a long discussion with them about the girls and they are more than willing to take the girls in."

"That's really great!" gushed Hotaru, pulling her lover in a tight hug.

"I know! The girls are going tomorrow."

Hotaru smiled, turning around once more to stir the food in the skillet. "What are their occupations?" Setsuna pulled away from the raven and moved her way over to the cabinet and pulled out a cup to prepare to some hot tea in.

"Elaine happens to be a nurse and Ken owns a Go-Karting place in Juuban. I've also been told he does some mechanical work on the side as well."

"You think the girls are going to like it there?"

"I have a feeling that they will…it will take some time…but I think they will like the Tsukinos."

Hotaru smiled, placing the food on two separate plates. "I hope you're right."

-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\

Serena and Chad sat under the large tree at the Orphanage talking quietly amongst themselves. Amara suddenly swung down into her sister's view, her legs holding her up on the tree branch. She had a rather large grin upon her face as she flipped her way out of the tree and landed gracefully on the ground below her.

She took a seat beside her sister and the small blond placed her head on her shoulder, still talking rather animatedly with Chad about God only knows what. Amara began to twirl a piece of her sister's hair between her fingers, looking around the playground silently. She often wondered how long she and Serena were going to be here, not that she didn't like it here…but she wanted to do things…go to school…be a part of a real family.

"Amara! Serena!" The young tomboy snapped out of her thoughts and turned towards Tassy who had an excited look upon her face and a smiling Setsuna standing beside her.

"What is Setsuna doing here?" Serena's head perked up at the mention of the Social Worker and turned to look upon the woman as she and Tassy advanced towards them.

"I don't know." replied the small blonde, sitting up as Setsuna stopped before them.

"Hey Sets!" exclaimed Serena, jumping from her seat and hugging the older woman affectionately.

"Hi Serena." giggled Setsuna and returned the hug. She shifted her eyes to Amara, nodding towards the girl who returned the gesture as well.

"Well girls, I have some good news for you."

Serena arched a brow. "Which is?"

"I found you a foster home." Amara and Serena shared a glance as a small grin crept upon both of their faces.

"Really?!" exclaimed Serena.

"Yes, now come along. They are waiting on you."

"Okay!" replied Serena, jumping to her feet. She suddenly paused in her walk towards Setsuna and turned towards Chad who had his head bowed. She suddenly frowned realizing that she would be leaving Chad alone and that made her heart ache.

She turned to Setsuna with a small smile. "I'll be there in a second." Setsuna nodded and turned, knowing the child wanted to talk to the boy. She began to head back towards the building, Tassy following closely behind her. Serena turned from Setsuna's retreating back as Amara slowly stood on her own two feet.

"Chad… you alright?"

Chad raised his head, revealing saddened eyes. "Yeah…I'm real happy for you guys. I hope you really like this family. It's just…I wasn't expecting you to leave so soon."

Serena bent down and gave Chad a big hug. "I'm going to miss you."

Chad chuckled, pulling back from the small blonde. "I'm going to miss you guys too. Though…I kind of feel like we are going to see each other again."

Serena suddenly giggled as she stood to her feet. "You know…Darien said the same thing."

Chad smirked. "I guess we all are going to cross paths again."

"Maybe." replied Serena. She gave Chad one more hug before she latched herself upon her sister's arm.

"Bye Chad!"

"I think you mean, see you later."

Serena grinned, despite the tears welling in her eyes. "See you later."

-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-

A young woman with long lavender hair and light blue eyes was bustling around her home making sure everything was clean and tidy. She had a duster and was currently cleaning the coffee table once again.

"Honey please sit down, you dusted that table four times already." Replied her husband, whom was sitting down in a dark brown lazy boy chair, reading the sports section in the newspaper. He had dark brown hair that was neatly cropped a top of his head and glasses hiding his dark brown eyes.

His wife turned around with wild eyes. "Everything must be clean!"

Her husband shook his head with a smile at his wife's cleaning obsession. He folded his newspaper and placed it on the coffee table and stood from his seat. He came up behind his wife and wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed her lightly on the cheek.

"Stop worrying so much."

The woman paused in dusting and sighed heavily. "I know; I just want everything to be perfect."

The man chuckled softly. "Everything is perfect dear, now please sit down and rest."

The woman smiled and reluctantly took a seat on the sofa. "I don't know what I would do without you."

The man took a seat and wrapped an arm around his wife's shoulders just as the door bell rang. The woman jumped from her seat with excitement, nearly knocking her husband off of the couch.

"They're here!" she exclaimed before running to the door. She threw the door open just as her husband straightened his glass and stood from the couch. He heard his wife squeal and made his way towards the door. He was greeted with a rather tall woman wearing a dark brown business suit and a thick manila folder in her hands.

His eyes then shifted downwards and spotted one adorable little girl with bright blue eyes and long blonde hair and she was clinging onto the social worker's pant leg. To the side of them was another child who looked a little older and he assumed was a little boy with short cropped blonde hair and cold piercing green eyes. He had his arms crossed over his chest and was staring off at something ahead of him. The man arched a brow…he could of sworn the Social Worker had said they were getting two girls.

The woman in the doorway cleared her throat and smiled warmly upon the couple. "Mr. and Mrs. Tsukino, it's a pleasure to meet you. My name is Setsuna Meioh."

"Please call me Ken," replied Mr. Tsukino.

"You can call me Elaine." Replied Mrs. Tuskino as she bowed before the woman. She stepped back from the doorway. "Please come in."

The woman smiled in thanks and looked upon the two girls. "Come on girls, let's go inside."

The group of three shuffled into the house, as Ken stared at the short haired blonde with an arched brow. "A girl?" he whispered under his breath. He was suddenly snapped out of his thoughts when Setsuna began to speak once more.

"Well I shall introduce you to the children." She pointed towards the short haired blonde. "This is Amara and she is nine." Amara didn't say anything, only frowned and looked down to her feet, so Setsuna continued with her introduction. "This is Serena and she is seven." Serena hid behind Setsuna's pant leg and gripped the soft cloth tightly and looked upon the young married couple shyly.

"Do you think we can talk privately for a moment?" asked Setsuna.

"Oh, yes sure." Replied Ken and turned to his wife who had already squatted down before the small blonde.

"Would you like to watch some TV? Serena looked up to Setsuna then turned towards Elaine and hesitantly nodded. Elaine then turned towards Amara who has yet to speak or acknowledge anyone in the room.

"Would you like to watch TV too, Amara?" Amara shifted her green eyes upon the woman and then shifted her them onto her younger sister whom was staring back at her. Amara sighed heavily and gave a curt nod.

Elaine smiled and took a hold of Serena's hand and escorted her towards the couch, Amara following closely behind them. She waited for the girls to take a seat together on the sofa and picked up the TV remote and searched through the channels till she spotted cartoons. She placed the remote on the table and turned towards the kids whose eyes were glued to the TV screen, Serena clinging tightly onto Amara's arm. She began to tell them that she would be in the kitchen but decided against it and entered the kitchen, spotting her husband and Setsuna sitting at the table waiting patiently for her.

Setsuna cleared her throat upon Elaine's arrival and sat up in her seat, placing the manila folder down on the table. "Well, we have already discussed the well being of the children yesterday." Ken and Elaine nodded and Setsuna smiled, tucking loose strands of green and black hair behind her ear before turning rather serious.

"Being that the girls have gone through so many traumas, I feel that it would be wise for them to see a therapist once a week."

"Of course." replied Elaine with a nod of the head, an involuntarily shiver creeping up her spine. She was suddenly hit with the memories of all they had discussed about Amara and Serena, the abuse, their mother's death and their father's disappearance. "What days will they be going?"

"Well I have Serena attending on Mondays at 4pm and I have Amara on Wednesdays at 5pm. The sessions are an hour long and their therapist will be Dr. Hotaru Tomoe."

Ken nodded his head with a small smile. "That sounds perfect."

Setsuna smiled, gathering up her manila folder and stood from her seat. "I also wanted to remind you about Amara."

"Which is?" questioned Ken.

"Amara is still rather hostile towards men, so don't be upset if she is a bit rude to you Ken."

"I'll keep that in mind."

"The girls are also registered to start school Monday. I believe you have their uniforms already?"

"Yes we do."

"Alright then." replied Setsuna, pulling her car keys from her purse. "I'll take my leave. I will be here on Friday to check on the girls and then my visits will come once a month."

"Okay." replied Ken as Setsuna began to head into the living room once more. She smiled as she looked upon the girls whose eyes were glued to the television screen before them. She called their names a couple of times but received no response and suddenly giggled with a shake of her head.

"Well, I will see you on Friday." She lead herself towards the door and left as both Ken and Elaine waved her off. Closing the door behind them, Ken ran a hand through his hair and wrapped his arm around his wife and pulled her closer to him.

"So what do we do now?" whispered Ken.

Elaine suddenly grinned and patted her husband against his chest with her hand. "While I go and make lunch, you can entertain the girls."

Ken's face fell. "Wha…"

Elaine reached up on her tip- toes and pecked her husband on the lips and turned, making her way into the kitchen. "Thanks!"

Ken sighed heavily, running a hand done his face with a deep sigh. He suddenly shifted his eyes upon the two blondes, letting off a small groan. "Here goes nothing…"

Author: That's all for now! Hope you enjoyed and please review!!!


	7. B1: Chapter 6

Author: Thanks so much for the reviews!

Disclaimer: Don't own Sm

Ken made his way across the room and sat down in his lazy boy chair, looking upon the girls curiously. They hadn't acknowledge his presence, their eyes glued to the television screen before them. Scratching the back of his head, he began to ponder what he could do to entertain the girls…as the TV seemed to be doing a great job of performing that task.

He pouted, wanting their attention on him. Only problem is…he had no idea what little girls liked except dolls and…and other girly crap! He liked to get dirty…mess with cars and go hunting! What he really wanted to do is play with his new Go-Kart in the garage. He hadn't the time to test drive it yet…

He suddenly arched a brow wondering if the girls wanted a try at it. He cleared his throat. "Hey!"

Both Amara and Serena snapped their heads towards him and the look they gave him caused him to nearly shrink back. Nervously licking his lip, he sat up in his seat and gave a small smile.

"I was wondering if you wanted to come test this Go-Kart I have."

Serena furrowed her brows. "What's that?"

Ken scratched the back of his head. "Well…it's like a little motor car."

A grin slowly crept upon Amara's face as her full attention was drawn to the man before her. "Does it have a steering wheel and gas pedal?!"

"Sure does!" replied Ken with a grin.

"Oh! I want to drive it!" exclaimed Amara in excitement, though she soon furrowed her brows and frowned. "Where is it?"

"In the garage, we can drive it up and down the street in front of the house."

"Okay!" Amara than chewed upon her bottom lip and turned towards her sister.

"You coming?" Serena slightly tilted her head to the side as if she was pondering over the question. She could tell that her sister really wanted to do this but she didn't want to go alone. With a silly grin, she nodded her head.

"Yeah! Let's go."

"Awesome!" chirped the tomboy as she stood from her seat along with the younger blonde. Ken stood from his seat as well, a grin forming upon his face.

"Alright, let me go tell Elaine what we're doing and then we can go." The blondes nodded and Ken made his way into the kitchen.

Serena turned towards Amara with a small smile. "They don't seem so bad."

Amara snorted, crossing her arms over her chest. "We've been here for like 10 minutes, of course they don't seem bad."

Serena frowned. "Don't be like that."

"Like what?"

"Thinking that they're going to be like Daddy."

Amara narrowed her eyes upon her younger sister. "They could be."

"Setsuna wouldn't have sent us here then."

"What makes you think Setsuna knows everything about them?"

Serena opened her mouth, than silently closed it, shifting her eyes to the floor. "Look…I know what you're saying but I really don't think they're like Daddy. Give them a chance…I really think I'm going to like them…I think I'm going to like it here." Serena than cocked a brow. "Isn't this what we've been waiting for?"

Amara pouted, running her fingers through her tussled hair. "I'll give them a chance…but I'm keeping my guard up."

Serena grinned. "That's all I'm asking for."

-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-

Ken made his way into the kitchen, spotting his wife chopping up some vegetables on the counter. He quietly entered the room and sauntered his way behind her like a sneaky cat. With out warning he quickly snaked his arms around his oblivious wife and pulled her close to him.

"What are you doing!?"

Elaine jumped startled, whirling around in her husband's arms with a glare from hell. "KEN! I could have stabbed you!"

Ken chuckled as his wife smacked him across the chest. "I'm sorry…I couldn't resist." He suddenly gave a pitiful puppy-dog pout, causing Elaine to roll her eyes. "Am I forgiven?"

"You should be ashamed of yourself." she muttered, pushing the laughing man away from her to begin chopping the vegetables once again. With a lopsided grin, Ken leaned against the countertop and looked upon at his wife after snatching up a freshly chopped carrot and popping it into his mouth.

"I'm taking the girls outside to ride in the Go-Kart."

"Make sure they wear their seat belt!" replied Elaine, looking upon her husband sternly.

"Of course Babe." Ken grinned, pushing himself off the counter. "So what are we doing after we eat?"

"Well I was planning on taking the girls clothes shopping, maybe get some things they can play with and some things to spice up their rooms."

Ken's face faulted. "Shopping?! I hate shopping." He frowned deeply, turning to leave the room. "If you need anything I'll be out front." Elaine nodded and Ken stepped out of the kitchen and made his way back in to the living room where the girls were patiently waiting by the door. With a grin, he escorted them out of the door and towards the garage. He typed in a code on a electronic device on the garage and the doors rose open.

He led the girls into the rather spacious room where the bright orange Go-cart sat sitting within all of its glory. The normal Karts he had at the track normally drove at max 15 mph, but this beauty he had sitting right here is able to go 40mph. Ken's face lit up like a kid on Christmas as he circled around the vehicle and stopped to stand behind it, pushing it out into the drive way.

Amara's eyes widened as she stared upon the vehicle in a trance like state. She wanted to get behind the wheel of the car, smash the peddle to the metal, feel the wind blowing in her hair…oh yea, she was going to drive the hell out of that thing. Though, what puzzled her about the vehicle was the weird frame around the bottom of it.

"What's that thing around the car?"

Ken paused in his movements and turned towards Amara. "It's to protect the car when it's on the track."

"Oooh." murmured Amara, she and Serena following after the car closely. Once the car was out of the garage, Ken made his way to the back of the vehicle and pulled on the draw string to start the engine. When the engine roared to life, Ken grinned, turning towards the girls.

"Who wants to drive first?"

"I do!" exclaimed Amara. Serena shrunk back behind her sister and nudged her forward.

"Yeah, Amara wants to go first."

Ken chuckled, waving the short haired blonde forward. "Step right up then."

Amara grinned, quickly making her way to the car and jumped inside. She fastened her seatbelt and had her foot on the gas pedal and her hands gripping the steering wheel before Ken could utter a word. Shrugging his shoulders, Ken squatted down and began to give the child some simple instructions.

"Green pedal is to go, Red is to stop…I assume you know how to steer?" Amara enthusiastically nodded her head so Ken continued. "Don't stomp on the gas pedal, just slowly easy down on it. Go up the street, then down, then pull up back here. Got it?"

"Got it, can I go?"

Ken stood to his feet and took a step back, looking up and down the normally deserted street. Seeing that the road was clear, he turned back to the impatient child.

"Go!" Amara slammed on the gas petal and shot of down the street like a bolt of lightening.

"Holy…" started Ken as Amara came flying back past them to the other end of the street.

"Shit…!" finished Ken as Amara parked back in front of him with the biggest grin upon her face.

"Oh my God that was so awesome!" she unbuckled her seatbelt and jumped out of the car. Ken ran a hand through his hair, a look of shock upon his face.

"She handled that car like a pro." he whispered, watching the young tomboy make her way over to her sister.

"Your turn Serena!" exclaimed the blonde.

Serena nervously chewed on her bottom lip, staring at the car skeptically. "I don't know."

"Aw come on Sere, it's really cool!" urged Amara.

Ken nodded, snapping out of his earlier stupor. "Give it a try."

Serena sighed and slowly made her way over to the Go-Kart and jumped inside. Ken helped her place on her seat belt and the small blonde nervously gripped the steering wheel, looking at the road before her. Ken placed a hand on her shoulder and the blonde looked up at him with a meek smile.

"If you want, I can help you steer while you press the gas."

Serena slowly turned her head towards Ken, chewing on her bottom lip. "Really?"

Ken nodded, reaching forward and firmly taking a hold of the steering wheel. "Take your right foot and lightly press it on the green pedal, if you want to stop, press the red pedal." Serena nodded, lightly tapping the gas pedal. As soon as the vehicle began to move, Serena automatically hit the break pedal, causing the car to jerk to a stop and Ken nearly tripping over his toes. This action continued for a couple of moments before the small blonde felt comfortable enough to drive at a steady pace.

She grinned, excitedly looking up at Ken. "I think I want to drive by myself." The brown haired man nodded, releasing the steering wheel. He walked along side with the car as Serena slowly drove, her tongue sticking out of the corner of her mouth as she concentrated on the road in front of her. After she finished her turn, Elaine stepped out of the front door.

"Lunch is ready!"

Ken pouted. "But I didn't get to drive it yet." he muttered, grabbing the steering wheel and leading the Go-Kart back into the garage; the girls following closely behind him.

"Will I get to drive that again?" question Amara anxiously.

Ken turned towards the child with a grin, turning off the engine with a flick of a switch. "Of course. Being that you two don't start school till Monday, we can go down to the race track tomorrow." He began to escorted the girls out of the garage and pressed a button on the electronic device on the outside of the garage, causing it's doors to close.

Turning to the girls once more, he grinned. "Time to eat!"

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Amara held back a grin as Ken and Elaine stared upon her sister incredulously. Serena was once again stuffing her face like she's never eaten before, shoveling down food at an alarming rate. Elaine turned to the short haired blonde, arching a brow.

"Does she always eat like this?"

Amara nodded. "Yep." she replied, awkwardly taking a bit out of her rice ball. She was still unused to not being able to use her front teeth, but thankfully her new set of teeth were beginning the make their appearance.

Swallowing down her food, Serena looked upon Ken and Elaine curiously. "So…what are we suppose to call you?"

Elaine looked startled for a moment, completely taken aback by the sudden question. How had they forgotten that little bit of information? She smiled, setting her cup of tea down on the table.

"You can call us by our names."

Elaine stood from her seat as she began to pick up the empty plates from around the table and placed them in the sink. She turned on the water and waited for it to warm up, before lathing up a dish rag and wash began washing the dishes.

Serena turned to Ken curiously as the man stood from his seat as well. "What are we going to do now."

Ken smiled. "When Elaine's finished we are going to the mall to get you girls some clothes."

"Awesome!" exclaimed Serena as Amara rolled her eyes and groan; she really hated shopping. Ken shifted his eyes towards the short haired blonde and smirked; he and Amara may get along better than he expected.

-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-

Amara held a look of pure horror as Elaine held up a pink skirt and a matching pink blouse. "This is so cute!"

Amara viciously shook her head as Serena giggled. "Nuh uh!"

Elaine pouted. "What do you mean nuh uh?"

"I am not wearing that!" Amara crossed her arms over her chest and turned away from the outfit in utter disgust.

"Besides…pink is ugly."

"You shut your mouth Amara!" exclaimed Serena.

"Well it's the truth!" snapped Amara.

"Is not! Yellow is ugly!"

Amara gasped. "You take that back!"

"Never! It is ugly!"

"Is not!"

"Is too!"

"**IS NOT!**"

"**IS TOO!**"

"**GIRLS!**" Both Amara and Serena snapped their head towards Elaine.

"Amara go with Ken and pick out something that you want to wear while I help Serena pick out some clothes."

Amara slowly turned her head towards Ken as fear slowly welled up inside of her. Yeah, the guy is cool and all…but he was still a guy. He could be plotting…waiting for the moment to get her by herself and hurt her like her Dad.

"I don't want him to come with me."

Elaine sighed deeply with a small frown. "Fine, I'll take you and Ken will help Serena."

"Okay!" exclaimed Serena, latching a hold of Ken's hand and tugging him along with her. "I saw this really cute bunny shirt over here!" Ken pouted, but didn't respond as his wife held back a giggle at her husband's demise.

Elaine looked down at the short haired blonde. "Alright Amara, lead the way. The child nodded leading her foster mother towards the boys department of the store. Rummaging through an assortment of clothing, she picked out a pair of baggy blue jeans and a yellow and white stripped polo t-shirt.

The lavender haired woman arched a brow at the nice outfit. "Those are boy clothes Honey."

"I know that."

"Well, how about we pick out something from the girls section."

Amara shook her head. "I don't like that stuff."

Elaine ran her fingers through her long tresses. "Why not?"

Amara furrowed her brows, shifting her green eyes onto the clothes she held. "I don't like how I feel when I wear girl clothes. I feel like me when I wear stuff like this." she replied, holding up pants and shirt.

Elaine nodded, ruffling the blonde's hair. "Alright then. Pick out some more outfits, we still have some more stores to go to." Amara nodded, handing Elaine the shirt and pants and bounded off to find some more clothing.

"I guess I'm going to have to change out her uniform as well." murmured Elaine as she shuffled the clothing in her arms and followed after the quickly disappearing child.

-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-

Elaine yawned tiredly as the ending credits of Toy Story rolled across the screen. She lazily ran her fingers through Amara's hair as the blonde was asleep with her head resting on her lap. She turned towards her husband as he gave off a light snore, his glasses resting on top of his head, his feet propped up on the coffee table; Serena curled up against his side fast a sleep as well, a stuffed white bunny clutched tightly in her arms.

Sitting up in her seat, Elaine reached over and nudged her husband. Ken jerked awake, looking about him wildly, before his eyes rested upon his giggling wife. With a yawn, Ken placed his glasses back in its rightful place, shifting drowsy eyes towards the TV screen.

"Movie over?"

Elaine nodded. "Yes, come on. Let's get the girls to bed."

Ken gave a curt nod, sliding out from under Serena, than scooping her up from the couch. Elaine followed in his lead, picking up Amara herself. They both silently made their way to the stairway, climbing up the steps and they both stopped at the first bedroom which happened to be Serena's.

"Go tuck Serena in, I got Amara." Ken nodded as Elaine continued on down the hallway. He stepped into the bedroom and made his way through the dark room. He pulled back the light pink comforter and sheets and gently placed the blonde down on the bed and tucked her in. Before leaving the room, he made sure to flick on the night light Serena had proclaimed she had to have.

Closing the bedroom door behind him, he made his way to Amara's room, where he spotted his wife tucking in the short haired blonde. Once she was finished, she made her way to her husband and he wrapped an arm around her shoulders.

"Today went pretty well." whispered Elaine as she closed the door behind her and her husband.

"I have to agree." replied Ken as he escorted his wife into their bedroom. The two silently changed into their sleepwear and climbed into their massive king sized bed. They settled comfortably and fell into a peaceful slumber.

-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-

Amara shot up in her bed as a streak of lightening lit up her bedroom, followed by booming thunder that nearly made the ground shake. Terrified, she jumped out the bed and quickly made her way out of the bedroom. Upon running out of the room, she crashed into some something solid and fell flat on her back completely winded. Rolling over onto her stomach, she spotted her sister doing the same.

"Serena? What are you doing out here?"

Serena rubbed at her eyes as she slowly climbed to her feet. "The thunder woke me up." She turned and looked at the Tsukino's bedroom door . "I think I want to go in there with them."

Amara didn't respond, only followed after her sister as she made her way towards the room. Serena slowly crept the door open and the duo quietly slipped into the room. They both made their way towards the massive bed.

Standing before the bed, Amara looked up at her sister who had already climbed up on the bed. "You sure about this?"

"I'm not going back in there!" stated Serena as she began to crawl under the blankets between Elaine and Ken. Sighing heavily, Amara climbed up on the bed, climbing under the blankets beside her sister. Once she was comfortable, Serena laid her head on upon her chest, snuggling up against her. The last thing she remembered was hearing Ken's long drawled out snore before she fell fast asleep.

Author: Well, that's all for now ^_^ hope you enjoyed that.


	8. B1: Chapter 7

Author: Wow I got a big response! Thanks so much for the review you guys!

Disclaimer: Don't own Sm.

Elaine stifled a yawn, running a hand lazily through her tussled lavender locks. Rising from the bed, she soon frowned, feeling an unexpected weight upon her back. Confused, she slightly craned her head and spotted a pair of legs; the rest of the body draped over her form. Now startled, she rose a little higher from the bed to turn her head a little more, now able to see that the body belonged to Serena.

Shifting her eyes back to the bed, she noticed that Amara as well was lying in it, sprawled out on her back, feet towards the pillows and her head towards the opposite end of the bed. She had one arm draped over Serena's feet as her other arm was lying across Ken's legs. On closure inspection, she realized that Ken had his arms wrapped around one of Amara's legs, his head resting upon her foot; blanket and sheets littering the floor.

Holding back a giggle, Elaine expertly slipped out from underneath Serena's sleeping form without disturbing the child and made a quick retreat to her dresser. There, she picked up and turned on her digital camera and pointed it towards the sleeping trio. Zooming in on the scene, she grinned and clicked the shutter button, allowing the rather large room to be illuminated with a bright white light. She took a moment to admire the picture with a warm smile before turning off the camera and setting it down on the dresser once again.

"I think I'm in the mood for some pancakes." she murmured softly, exiting the bedroom, humming a soft tune as she left.

-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-

The sweet aroma of Elaine's cooking slowly filled the kitchen and soon the entire house, awakening a very hungry 7 year old. Serena bolted upright in the bed, eyes still closed and silently sniffed the air. Her eyes suddenly snapped open, a large grin beaming upon her face.

"Pancakes!" she exclaimed, clumsily climbing to the edge of the bed. The movements caused Amara to stir awake, green eyes fixed on Serena as the blonde tumbled off the bed. A rather loud thud was heard when the small blonde collided to the hard wooden floor below her.

"OW!"

"HAHA!" Serena's head popped up from the side of the bed, heated eyes glaring upon her laughing sister.

"Not funny!"

Amara grinned rakishly. "Looked pretty funny to me!"

Serena pouted, standing from the floor, rubbing her sore shoulder. "You're so mean!"

Amara rolled her eyes and began to make an advancement towards the edge of the bed, only to find that she couldn't. Frowning, she turned her head in confusion, spotting Ken, holding onto her leg. A little freaked, Amara began to pull on her leg, causing Ken to tighten his firm grip. Serena frowned herself as she saw panic embedded in her sister's eyes and quickly climbed herself on top of the massive bed. She crawled her way over to Ken and took a hold of one of his arms and began to tug up on it.

"Geeze…he's strong." muttered the young blonde, turning to Amara, the girl's eyes welling with tears.

"Amara…calm down. He just holding your leg; he's a sleep."

"I don't care! I want him off!." she snapped, a lone tear trailing down her flushed cheek. Serena swallowed deeply, empathizing with her sister. She quickly turned to Ken and placed her small hands upon his shoulder and gave him a few rough shakes. Ken blearily opened his eyes startled and as soon as his grip loosened upon Amara's leg, the blonde snatched the appendage away and scurried her way off of the bed.

Ken rolled over to his night stand, taking a hold of his glasses and placed them on. He arched a brow when his gazed landed on a grinning Serena. He then averted his eyes towards Amara who stood at the edge of the bed., glaring daggers at him. Confused, he shifted his eyes upon Serena once more.

"Is something wrong?"

"Nope!" chirped the blonde, causing Ken to narrow his eyes slightly. Shaking off the feeling that something **was** wrong, he slowly made his way of the bed and ran his fingers through his messy brown locks.

"Smells like breakfast is ready." he replied, flashing the girls a smile. As if on cue, Serena's belly rumbled loudly and the girl clutched at her stomach with a look of distress.

"I'm so hungry!" she cried, hurriedly climbing off of the bed. As soon as her feet touched the floor, she darted for the door and out of the room. Amara frowned deeply as she watched her sister go and found herself leaving the room as well, Ken silently following behind her; a good bit of distance between the two.

-\-\-\-\-\-\-

Elaine jumped startled as she spotted the girls and Ken sitting at the kitchen table, waiting for their breakfast patiently…well at least Amara was. Arching a brow, Elaine looked upon the three questioningly.

"When did you get in here?"

"We've been sitting here for like 5 minutes and yes we saw you dancing and heard you singing." replied Ken with a smirk.

Elaine blushed, hearing Amara and Serena giggling and quickly turned to retrieve the finished pancakes from out of the skillet. She placed the fresh golden pancakes on a large plate with the others, placing the skillet into the sink. Taking a hold of the large plate, she made her way to the table, dishing out the food; she and Amara receiving two pancakes, Ken three, and Serena four. After retrieving the butter and syrup, Elaine was able to take a seat and indulge into her breakfast with her family.

She paused in mid bite as she looked upon Ken and the two girls hungrily tearing into their food. She smiled…yep…this was her new family and she liked the ring of that. Grinning to herself, she continued eating.

Serena picked up the last piece of her pancake and skillfully swirled it in syrup. Rising the fork to eye level, she silently watched as the syrup dripped off the golden treat. She closed her eyes and suddenly engulfed the pancake, pulling the fork from her lips and slowly began to chew with a small sigh. Swallowing deeply, she leaned back in her seat, laying her fork down in her empty plate and rubbed her belly happily. She slowly crept her eyes open to see Elaine, Ken and Amara staring upon her.

"What?"

"Was that necessary?"

Serena shifted her eyes to her sister. "What are you talking about?"

Amara shook her head. "That whole little scene you just had."

Serena arched a brow. "The last bite is the best part!"

"You've got issues."

Ken chuckled as Elaine choked on her coffee in her attempt to hold back a giggle. She quickly stood from her seat to redeem herself and began to gather the empty dishes. Placing them in the sink she turned to the girls.

"You two go ahead and get washed up and dressed."

"Where are we going?" asked Serena, grinning with excitement.

"You wanted to go to the Go-Kart track didn't you?" replied Ken.

Amara snapped her head towards the man, her own eyes lighting up with concealed excitement. "I get to drive again?"

"If you want too." Amara grinned and without another word, darted out of the room; Serena fast on her heels. Ken chuckled, standing from his seat in the kitchen and turning towards his wife who was washing the dishes.

"I think I've found something they really like."

Elaine smiled, turning to her husband. "Making progress I see."

Ken grinned, making his way towards the love of his life and wrapped his arms around her. "Want me to help you with the dishes?"

Elaine shook her head. "I'm almost done, you go and get dressed." Ken nodded, placing a soft kiss upon her cheek and left to perform his given task.

-\-\-\-\-\-\-

Amara struck a few poses in front of bathroom mirror, before grinning upon her reflection. "Oh, I look so good!." She winked, before jumping off the sink counter top and grabbed her black button down shirt, placing it on over her white undershirt. She buttoned up the shirt, leaving the top two unclasped. She then bent down, rolling the cuffs of her dark baggy blue jeans over her black and white high-top converse sneakers. Standing upright once more, she straightened her shirt and with a nod of satisfaction she began to leave the bathroom.

She made her way to her sister's room that was combined with hers through the bathroom. Upon entry, the tomboy spotted her sister sitting in front of her vanity mirror, combing her long blonde hair. The young blonde was adorned in a sky blue tank top with a picture of Gir in his green dog outfit, tongue sticking out the corner of his mouth and a cupcake clasped in his hand, nestled on the center of her shirt. She as well wore a pair of light blue jean shorts and white tennis shoes.

Amara turned away from her, walking towards her sister's bed and plopped down upon it. Lying on her stomach, she propped her chin up on palms of her hands; feet kicking lazily behind her.

"What's taking you so long?"

Without pausing in her task at hand, Serena responded. "You know it takes a long time to do my hair."

Amara pouted. "Why don't you just cut it."

Serena snapped her head towards the older blonde so fast, she nearly gave herself whiplash. "I would never!"

Amara rolled her eyes. "Its just hair."

Serena turned from her sister, hand clutching upon her long tresses. "It's not just hair…it make me think of Mom." Straightening her posture, she began combing her hair again, smirking upon her sister through the mirror. "and…instead of you complaining, you should be over here helping."

The tomboy looked exasperated for a moment, before she stuck out her tongue as her sister's back and steadily climbed off of the bed. She made her way over to Serena and waited patiently as the blonde parted her hair.

"You haven't worn your Odangos in a while." replied Amara, as she took a hold of the thick golden locks and expertly twisted it up into the well known hair style her mother always wore.

"I didn't have any pins."

"Oh." Amara took a step back after placing the last pin within the hair and watched as Serena looked into the mirror to make sure her Odangos were even and straight . With a grin, she gave two thumbs up, causing Amara to giggle.

"Perfect!"

Amara grinned. "Good! Now lets go. I want to drive again."

Serena cocked her head to the side, looking rather peculiar. "You really like that don't you?"

"Of course! Who wouldn't, now come on!" before the blonde could respond, Amara had already bolted for the door and was heading for the stairs. With a pout, Serena chased after her sister not wanting to be left behind.

-\-\-\-\-\-\-

A.J. pulled up into the drive way of his home with a grin plastered upon his face. He quickly exited his police vehicle and jogged his way up to the front door, entering his home. He made his was inside and upon hearing movements in the kitchen, he began to head towards that destination.

He spotted his wife talking on the phone, their 2 year old daughter Reika held up on her hip. When the infant spotted her father, she grinned and threw her arms into his direction, causing her mother to turn startled.

Laura smiled at her husband, handing her bouncing daughter to A.J. and turned to finish off her conversation on the phone. It wasn't long before Laura hung up the phone and turned to see her husband giving their giggling child sloppy kisses.

Grinning, she leaned back against the counter. "You're in a real good mood." A.J. pulled back from his daughter as the child laid her head down against his shoulder.

"I talked to Darien's grandfather today!"

Laura's mouth flew open before gasping in surprise. "Really? What happened? What did he say?"

"Well we talked for a long time, shared some stories about Donny and I terrorizing the neighborhood. Than I began telling him that Darien and Andrew were as close as Donny and I. So, he has decided that he's going to stay in Juuban. He wants Darien to grow up here like Donny and I had."

"This is great!" exclaimed Laura as tears of joy welled in her eyes.

"That's not even the best part. He's unrolling Darien from private school and is letting him go to public school with Andrew."

Laura stood in stunned silence as A.J. chuckled at his wife's expression. "Darien hasn't found any friends yet, so he's hoping the Darien will hit it off with Andrew again." He paused, looking around the kitchen for a moment. "Where's Andy? Dorian said he is bringing Darien to the Crown at noon."

"Your father picked him up about an hour ago. Alan wanted Andrew to help him install this new game he finally got."

"Oh." A.J. propped himself up on the edge of the kitchen table, looking upon his wife with furrowed brows. "You remember the girls I was telling you about, Setsuna's new case?" Laura nodded, allowing her husband to continue. "Well, there is just something about their father that has been bothering me…the big time trafficker gone addict; so I did a little more research on him. Come to find out, Donny was the cop that busted Tenoh on one of his big deals…" A.J paused., scratching at his chin.

"There's something big staring me in the face and I just can't figure it out. Plus what I've seen on the reports on his wife's car accident is throwing me off…how could there not of been an investigation done, I honestly don't think that accident was a suicide."

Laura arched a brow. "The accident was written off as a suicide?"

A.J. nodded. "Yes, I actually remember the case too. I was signed to it at first and I was at the scene. I remember getting a glimpse of the body." A.J. shook his head. "I know the wreck was bad, but the injuries she had sustained to the head did not come from the car accident...I just know it. Anyways, I had to interrogate the victim in the wreck. I remembered that he told me that the car just came at him like it wasn't being controlled…that next day I was taken off the case and put on another; I never heard about the incident again."

Laura frowned. "That sounds rather suspicious…and you sound as if she was dead before she started driving." A.J. snapped his head towards his wife startled by her words. Laura threw up her hands up at the serious expression her husband held, as he was pondering over the possibilities of that statement.

"Honey…there's no way that could have happened…that's crazy."

A.J. smiled softly "I know." He ran a hand through his blonde locks as his wife stepped towards him, placing a soft kiss to his cheek.

"Don't stress, you'll get to the bottom of this…you always do."

A.J. smiled, wrapping an arm around his wife's waist. "Thanks"

Laura grinned. "Now go upstairs and get dressed. I can feed and change Reika while you get ready."

A.J. gave a curt nod, handing off his half sleeping daughter to his wife. "Yes ma'am!" he dove in a gave her a quick peck on the lips before making a hasty retreat from the room.

-\-\-\-\-\-\-

"Wow, Amara is really good!" Elaine sat in the bleachers with Serena, watching in child-like amazement as Ken and Amara went head to head in race on the Go-Kart track. Serena nodded enthusiastically, turning towards Elaine.

"I know!" she cried. "They're nearing the finish line!"

"Oh man! Amara was so close!"

Serena pouted as her sister was defeated in the race. "I really thought she had him."

"I thought so too." replied Elaine as she lead the small blonde down the steps and down towards the two drivers. She couldn't hold back her smile as she spotted a sulking Amara climbing out of the yellow Go-Kart, her hair a wind-blown mess.

"I almost had you!"

Ken grinned turning towards the blonde. "Almost!"

Elaine took this moment to step in, turning her attention onto Amara. "You were so close, you did really good."

Amara blushed, casting her eyes down onto the ground. "Thanks."

Elaine than turned towards her husband. "How about we go to the Crown."

Ken arched a brow. "That arcade?"

Amara and Serena's heads perked up and they turned towards their foster parents. "Arcade?!" they asked in unison.

Ken grinned. "To the Crown it is." Amara and Serena darted past the two adults and hurriedly climbed up the stone steps. Ken watched them for a moment, before slowly turning his head towards his wife.

"I think I want Amara to race."

"You what?" questioned Elaine, taken aback by the sudden comment.

"I want Amara to compete in the Go-Kart races." he raised his hands before his wife could pretest. "It doesn't start until a couple of months…if she keeps her grades up, I think she should be able to join."

Elaine stood silent for a moment, contemplating over the idea. School is top priority, but she couldn't ignore the pure bliss Amara had on her face as she drove as fast as she could around the track with determination burning in her eyes. Elaine silently nodded, smiling up at Ken.

"If her grades stay up then she can join. I want to monitor her grades for the next couple of weeks before we talk to her about it."

Ken nodded with a grin. "Sounds like a plan." He raised out his hand for his wife to take, in which she did and they both shook on the agreement. They both turned upon the two girls as they heard Serena whinnin for them to hurry up.

With a chuckle, Ken took a hold of his wife's hand and began to lead her up the steps. "Let's hurry up before they keel over with impatience!" Elaine giggled, walking along side her husband and closer to the impatiently waiting blondes.

-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-

The Tuskino's and the girls pulled up to the Crown, just as a black stretch limousine pulled away. Serena's eyes widened as she stared upon the extended shinny black vehicle.

"Wow! I wonder who was in there!"

"Probably someone famous" replied Amara she stated at the departing vehicle in amazement.

"Come one girls." replied Elaine, helping the girls out of the car and began leading them towards the building where they could hear children playing and the loud noises of the arcade games. Serena grinned, hardly able to contain her excitement as grew closer to the entry way of the arcade.

Elaine and Ken laughed at the wide-eyed expression held upon both Amara's and Serena's faces as they entered the Crown and led them over to the booths. Elaine quickly took the girls orders so Ken could take them the to coin machine and give the girls some tokens.

Ken handed both girls a handful of tokens each. "Me and Elaine will be sitting over there, and I'll come get you when the food is here." The girls nodded enthusiastically and darted off in different directions before Ken could say anything else. With a shake of his head, he began to head back towards the table where his wife was placing their order with a waitress.

-\-\-\-\-\-\-

"Hey, you're really good at this game!" Serena jumped startled, whirling around to see a boy a little older than she, with short blonde hair and dark green eyes. She furrowed her brows as she nearly mistook him for Amara…although he still looked rather familiar, but she knew for a fact that she had never seen him before. Plastering on a smile, she let a small blush tint her cheeks.

"Thanks. What's your name?"

"I'm Andrew."

Serena grinned. "Hi Andrew, I'm Serena." Andrew returned the smile, with a small blush of his own tinting his cheeks. He shifted his eyes to the game as he saw the bold letters of GAME OVER flash across the scene.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I made you loose the game." replied Andrew, pulling out a and handful of tokens from his pants'pocket and handing them to the girl. Serena's eyes widened, as she stared upon the bronze tokens.

"The game is only one token to play!"

"I know, but I get a bunch of these. My grandpa owns this place."

Serena's eyes widened. "Really?"

"Yep!"

"Andrew!"

Andrew snapped his head towards his father. "Coming Dad!" He turned back to the blonde with a smile. "I got to go, hope I get to see you again!"

Serena nodded numbly as the boy ran off and Serena eyes stayed transfixed on A.J.'s retreating back. Now she knew why Andrew looked so familiar…Officer Furuhata is his father. The young blonde shook her head and turned back to the Sailor V game she was totally kicking ass on and inserted a coin and began a death match with Sailor V and the terrible Youma.

Author: Sorry it took so long! My laptop crashed and I had all of this but two scenes written. So, not knowing when I'm getting my computer fixed, I've decided to re-write the chapter. Well I hope you enjoyed! ^_^ next chapter I think I'll have the girls start school, I wonder who I'll be introducing next?!


	9. B1: Chapter 8

Author: ^_^ Thanks so much for the reviews you guys! Keep them coming!!!

Disclaimer: Don't own Sm.

A 7 year old girl with long chocolate brown hair pulled up into a high ponytail and sapphire green eyes grinned, fidgeting in her seat excitedly. Today was her mother's birthday and her father had planned a special surprise. They were going to do their normal weekday routine and leave in the morning like usual. Though, the normal routine changed when instead of her dad going to work, she herself going to school, and her little brother going to daycare, they went to the store and bought her mother a birthday present. She and her little brother were going to spend the whole day with their mom while their dad was going to take care of her baby sister at home.

Turning towards her 3 year old brother, she eyed him as he sat in his car seat, unruly chocolate brown bangs hanging loosely in his large sapphire green eyes. He suddenly giggled, clutching a large nicely gift wrapped box within his small arms and turned towards his sister.

"You think Mommy is going to like her gift Lita?"

Lita nodded, ruffling her brother's bangs playfully. "Of course she will Aiden!"

The young boy giggled once more, turning his head towards the window to look outside. Kicking his feet excitedly, he realized they were nearly home. Lita smiled, turning from her brother to look in the rear view mirror, spotting her father staring at them through it, a large grin upon his face. Lita returned the grin, drawing her attention to the windshield as they pulled up in the driveway of their home.

Aiden unfasten the buckles to his car seat and impatiently waited for his sister to unfasten her seat belt so she could take the present. As soon as Lita took a hold of the present, Aiden threw the bar of his car seat over his head and quickly took a hold of the gift. Lita helped him out of the car and their father John picked up his anxious son, helping the boy hold his wife's present.

Lita closed the car door and made her towards her father's side, taking a hold of his hand and he lead them to the front door. John released his daughter's hand to retrieve his key to unlock the door and once done, he replaced his keys in his side pocket and pushed the door open to allow Lita to step in. Walking in, he set Aiden down on the floor and turned towards his two children.

"You two wait in the kitchen while I go and get your mother." The two nodded and ran off into the kitchen and with a shake of his head, John made his way towards his bedroom. Seeing his bedroom door

slightly ajar, John pushed it open and spotted his wife fast asleep on the bed. He entered the room with a warm smile upon his face, eyes falling onto his 2 month old daughter lying in her frilly white bassinet, beneath a pale pink blanket. Walking towards her, his eyes narrowed, noticing that the infant's complexion was a startling blue.

Taking quick strides towards the bassinet, he leaned down and pulled back the blanket, arching a brow as she was nude and dripping wet. Swallowing the lump that formed in his throat, he pressed his fingers against his daughter's neck, shivering upon making contact with her icy cold skin. He snatched his hand away in horror, unable to find a pulse and ran a hand shakily through his short raven locks, sapphire green eyes wild with panic.

He turned towards his wife, taking several steps away from the bassinet, pressing his back up against the wall behind him. He shifted his eyes towards the nightstand beside the bed and stared down at his wife's nearly empty bottle of anti-depressants and an empty pint size bottle of Jack Daniels lying beside it.

He fell to his knees, tears welling in his eyes. "Oh my God." He whispered brokenly, shaking his head in denial. "This isn't happening…" He closed his eyes; tears falling silently. Hearing something clatter from within the kitchen, he quickly shook himself out of his stupor and slowly climbed to his feet.

"Lita and Aiden." he murmured, quickly leaving the room and heading to the kitchen. Entering the said room, he spotted Lita placing a 2 liter bottle of Sunkist in the refrigerator. With steady strides, he made his way across the kitchen and took a hold of Lita's arm, briskly turning her towards him and squatting down at eye level with her; the young brunette winced and looked up her father with wide startled eyes.

"Lita, I want you to take Aiden and get in the car." stated John, holding a look in his eyes that made Lita's own eyes well with tears of fright. She furrowed her brows in confusion, sensing that something was definitely not right.

"What's wrong?"

"Don't ask questions, just do as I say!" snapped John standing erect and nudging Lita towards Aiden, whom was drinking from his sippy cup and staring upon the two with a look of confusion apparent on his young face.

"Where's Mommy?" questioned the three year old.

"She's asleep, go with your sister to the car."

Aiden frowned, shifting his eyes towards the gift wrapped present. "But Mommy didn't open her present yet."

Clenching his jaw, John took a hold of his son and jerked him up from his seat and set him down beside his sister with a huff.

"Just get to the car!" yelled John, now loosing his cool. Aiden's eyes filled with tears, bottom lip puckered out and trembling. Lita took a hold of her his hand and began to tug him along towards the front door.

"Come on Aiden, let's just go to the car." Lita shifted her eyes up towards her father with a frown, just as her little brother nodded, rubbing at his eyes with a sob escaping him. John immediately felt guilty, but didn't have time to dwell on it as he had to deal with the situation in his bedroom.

Once he heard the front door close, he advanced his way back towards the bedroom Entering the room, he made his way towards the bassinet, silent tears of remorse and sorrow trailing down his ghastly pale face. With a wavering hand, he trailed his fingers through his daughter's curly raven locks, choking back a sob that rose in this throat. Turning away suddenly, he took slow steady steps towards his wife, unable to grasp that this was really happening.

Trying to keep his now rising anger in control, John placed a large hand upon his wife's shoulder and shook her awake. The brunette yawned, dark brown eyes wearily fixing themselves upon her husband. She smiled up at him, the tension in the room going unnoticed by her.

"Hey honey, how long have you been here?" she questioned, her speech slurred.

John clenched his trembling hands and glared upon the woman before him. "What happened to Caitlyn?"

Natalie stifled a yawn, lazily drifting her eyes towards the bassinet. "She wouldn't stop crying."

John narrowed his eyes dangerously close, utterly confused. "What?"

Natalie's eyes glazed over as a small smile tugged at the corners of her mouth. "She just wouldn't stop crying…I tried everything…God I tried everything to make her stop…so… as a last resort…I thought that maybe a warm bath would work." Her smile slowly broadened with a shake off her head and a small chuckle. "No…she just wasn't having it! She continued to cry and…." She grinned, hands clenching upon the comforter that laid across her lap. "…and I just her go..." Natalie shifted expressionless eyes upon her trembling husband. "Then the crying stopped…"

John shook his head, tears trailing down his pale cheeks. "Damn it Lee, she has colic! Of course she's going to fucking cry!" He shook his head from side to side. "You are sick…sick and fucking twisted!" He took several steps away from his wife as she began to rise to her feet. "I'm taking Aiden and Lita with me Natalie…you ..you need to find some help."

Natalie sneered upon her husband as she took a menacing step towards him. "You are not taking my babies from me!"

"Yes I am!" yelled John, his eyes emotionless. He turned away and began heading towards the door. Natalie suddenly let off a deranged scream as she bolted for her bed, reaching under her husband's pillow and she pulled out his 9mm pistol. She aimed the gun at her husband's back, her arms shaking and body swaying; she pulled the trigger.

A loud band sounded off and a bullet shot out, barely missing John and hitting the door frame; splinters exploding everywhere. John dropped to the ground and stared up at the destroyed door frame, than slowly shifted his eyes upon his wife whose eyes were narrowed into slits, taking aim upon him once more.

"You are not taking them!"

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Lita nearly dropped her brother when she heard a loud bang sounding off from within her house. She snapped her head towards her home with wide eyes and caught up in her stupor, Aiden was able to escape Lita's tight grasp she had upon him. Aiden dropped down to the ground and suddenly took off running towards the house.

"MOMMY! DADDY!" he screamed.

Lita turned to grab a hold of her brother's arm but he was just outside her reach. "Aiden! No!" The three year old ignored his sister's plea and bolted for the front door, throwing it open and running inside.

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John turned his head towards the front door when he heard it open and scrambled to his feet. Natalie growled, charging after him. In her futile attempt the tackle her husband to the ground, she tripped over the bassinet, pulling the trigger to the gun as she hit the floor.

John pulled away from his dazed wife, grabbing a hold of his bleeding shoulder. Pulling at the collar of his shirt, he examined his wound, seeing that the bullet had only grazed him. Turning towards the front door, he gasped in horror as he saw Aiden lying flat on his back in his own pool of blood. Blinking back tears and forgetting about his gun wielding wife, John crawled his way to his son; heart sunken to the pit of his stomach.

He inhaled sharply, seeing a hole torn through his son's chest. Letting out a shaky breath he leaned forward and closed his son's open eyelids, than turned towards his wife as she stepped up behind him, her eyes wide with shock and horror.

"Aiden!" she screamed, dropping to her knees and clutching a hold of her son by the collar of his shirt and began to shake him roughly.

John growled and shoved her away of him. "Get off of him!"

"Aiden!?" called Lita, making her way to the front door.

John snapped his head towards the front door with widen eyes and jumped to his feet. He made a mad dash towards the door as Lita began to push it open.

"Lita! Stay back!"

John suddenly dropped to his knees a few feet from the door way as he felt a searing burning sensation in his chest. He gasped as he felt a second hit and fell face forward, eyes locked upon Lita's blood splattered face as he dropped. Colliding heavily to the floor, he gather up all of his strength and gave Lita his final plea.

"Lita…please…run…" with that said, John gave his last breath, praying to the Gods that his daughter would be alright.

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Lita looked upon her father with wide horrified eyes., trembling as she stared upon his lifeless bloodied form. She slowly shifted her eyes upon her mother, as the woman was rising rather awkwardly to her feet. Swallowing deeply and taking a step back, she spotted a glimmer of red from her corner of her eye and slowly turned her head, settling her eyes upon her little brother who lay lifelessly on the floor as well.

Gasping in pure shock, she adverted her eyes from the terrifying scene and shifted them upon her mother once more. She narrowed her eyes when she spotting her father's gun in her mother's hand. Taking a hesitant step back, she frowned when her mother smiled upon her.

"Lita…come here…" called Natalie; a eerie smile creeping upon her face. "Come to Mommy, Lita."

Lita took another hesitant step back as warning bells and alarms rang off in her head and the only logical thought she could muster up was to run! So, she did just that! Spinning on her heels she ran, hearing her mother screaming at the top of her lungs for her to come back. Making her way to the white picket fence in the front yard, Lita jumped, climbing up to the top of the fence. Just as she was about to jump over and escape to freedom, she felt a burning sensation tearing through her shoulder.

Startled by the unexpected pain, she lost her grip and fell over the fence and onto the concrete ground below her with a grunt. Quickly rolling on to her knees and grabbing her bleeding shoulder, Lita jumped to her feet and made a mad dash down the sidewalk. She ignored her mother's screams as she continued to call for her, apologizing for what she had did. She ignored the overwhelming pain pulsing through her small form…and she ignored the images or her father's and brother's bloodied forms.

She only wanting to run as fast and as far as she could…

Another gun shot sounded off and Lita knew that her mother was gone now too. Letting the tears fall silently, she motivated herself to keep going…

She wasn't going to stop until her legs give out.

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Amara slipped on her navy blue blazer of her school uniform, adjusting it across her shoulders comfortably. She looked down at her button down white shirt, navy blue slacks and black dress shoes with a frown.

"I think I liked my old uniform better." she muttered, walking out of her bedroom and towards her sister's. Upon entering the room, Amara spotted Serena sitting upon her bed, with her head bowed, hands clenched upon the ponytail of her hair. With a frown, Amara walked across the room and sat beside her on the bed, throwing her arm around the blonde's shoulders.

"What's wrong?"

Serena sighed, than began to chew on her bottom lip. "Everything is changing…new family…now a new school and new friends." Serena shifted her eyes up at her sister. "I don't think I'm ready to start all over."

Amara tightened her grip around her sister's shoulder, leaning her head up against the blondes. "I'm not ready either…but its this or go back to Dad…and I would choose this any day."

Serena gave a small smile. "I guess your right."

Amara grinned. "I know I'm right! So lets go and get this over with! The first day is always the worst."

Serena sighed deeply, pulling away from her sister and standing from the bed with a grin. "I can do this…peace of cake!"

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Serena stood in the main office of her new elementary school, body tense, hands clenched so tight her knuckles were a ghastly white. She swallowed deeply, shifting slightly panicked eyes upon her nonchalant sister.

"I can't do this."

Amara shifted her eyes upon the blonde, burying her hands deeply into her pockets of her slacks. "What happened to the 'I got this…peace of cake!' confidence you had?"

"Screw that! I can't do this…so many kids…and teachers…a new principal…"

"That I'll probably be seeing every other day…"

Serena glared at the tomboy. "Don't be starting trouble Amara!"

Amara scuffed, crossing her arms over her chest. "I don't cause trouble, trouble comes to me."

Serena rolled her eyes. "Whatever!" Before Amara could retort, Elaine turned towards the two blondes with a smile.

"Alright girls, time for you to go to your classrooms." Serena gulped as Amara looked indifferently upon Elaine.

"Well, I need to get to work. I hope you girls have a good day and I will be here to pick you up when school is over."

"Okay." replied the blondes in unison.

"Alright…bye." Elaine waved as she walked out of the office and soon out of the school. Two ladies stepped in front of the two blondes and the tall one with the light brown hair spoke.

"We will be taking you to your classes now." she waved Serena forward. "I will be taking you."

As the sisters parted, Serena turned to Amara to see that the short haired blonde was smirking at her. "Peace of cake."

Serena grinned. "Peace of cake…" with that said, the duo went their separate ways on their own path.

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The woman who was escorting Serena to class smiled down at the nervous blonde. "My name is Mrs. Maxwell."

Serena nervously looked up at the woman. "Nice to meet you." she quickly turned away from the woman as began to slow her pace in front of a door. Mrs. Maxwell lightly knocked upon it and within a few seconds a rather short and plump woman came to the door and smiled upon the pair.

Mrs. Maxwell returned the smile, ushering Serena forward. "This is your new student Mrs. O'Neal, Serena Tenoh."

Mrs. O'Neal's smile broaden. "Oh yes, Serena. It's a pleasure to meet you."

Serena smiled bashfully. "Hi…"

Her teacher giggled. "I see you're a shy one. Come along, lets get you settled."

Serena waved her escort goodbye as she was lead into the classroom that held lightly chattering students. Once Serena came into view, the room silenced and all eyes were on the blonde.

"We have a new student, her name is Serena Tenoh and I expect you to treat her kindly!"

"Yes Mrs. O'Neal!" chorused the class. The teacher scanned the classroom for a moment, than looked down upon the small blonde.

"You can sit over there at the table." Serena turned towards the area the teacher was pointing too, seeing that it was the only group that had two people, instead of five. Quickly making her way towards the area, she was suddenly tripped and fell to the floor, hearing her new classmates erupt into laughter.

Quickly climbing to her feet, Serena whirled around and glared upon a smirking boy with short cropped silver hair and violet eyes. Mrs. O'Neal looked around the classroom startled, completely oblivious to what had happened.

She shifted confused eyes upon Serena. "Is something wrong Serena?"

"He tripped me!" stated Serena.

The teacher frowned. "Diamond, your starting off your morning in the principal's office once again!" The boy named Diamond stood from his seat, giving Serena an amused smirk. Without a word he left the room and the teacher turned to Serena once more.

"Please take a seat Serena." The blonde nodded, quickly making her way to her seat as her teacher began to write on the chalk board. Serena looked upon the two girls that were in her group, the first had short blue hair and dark blue eyes, the other had curly red shoulder length hair and hazel eyes.

The red head smiled upon the blonde. "Hey, my name is Molly." she turned towards the bluenette. "and that's Amy." The small blue haired child smiled bashfully, a light blush tinting her cheeks.

Serena grinned. "Hi!" she suddenly frowned, turning towards the seat theboy that had tripped her once occupied. "Who is that boy that tripped me." Serena watched as both Amy and Molly frown deeply.

"That's Diamond Kurotsuki." replied Molly. "You should stay away from him…he's always doing bad things…"

Mrs. O'Neal suddenly came up to Serena's table with a couple of texts books. "These are your new books, please take care of them." she suddenly turned her attention towards Amy. "I believe its time for you to go Amy."

Amy's dark blue eyes suddenly shot up towards the clock and they widened in alarm. "Oh no!" she quickly scrambled to her feet and gathered her belongings and was soon at the door and out of the classroom. Once the bluenette was gone, the teacher once again drew her attention towards the small blonde and began to show her where they were in the lessons.

Serena sighed heavily…today was going to be a long day…

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Serena quickly made her way into the girls bathroom to do her business. When she finished, she exited the stall and washed her hands and made a quick retreat from the bathroom. Lunch was only 20 minutes away and she was dying to get something into her belly. Plus she was really liking this Molly girls and couldn't wait to talk to her some more.

Stepping out of the bathroom and into the hallway, Serena ducked back into the doorway of the bathroom as she spotted Diamond walking towards the classroom. She furrowed her brows as she watched Diamond smile deviously and suddenly quickened his pace down the hall. Once he was out of her line of sight, Serena stepped out of the door when she heard someone cry out.

Moving out into the hallway, she spotted Amy being cornered by Diamond. The blonde frowned, hearing Diamond spewing out insults upon the young bluenette as the girl cowered back in fear. Without warning, Diamond suddenly lunged forwards and knocked Amy's books from her hands.

"Stop it!"

Diamond snapped his violet eyes upon Serena with a sneer. "What are you going to do about it?"

Serena's frown deepened , making her way over to the two and stepping in between Diamond and Amy. "Just leave her alone."

The boy pushed at Serena's shoulder. "No."

"Stop…" growled the blonde. Amy frowned, looking upon the two as she gathered her belongings. She nervously chewed upon her bottom lip, unsure of how to get her and Serena out of this predicament. Diamond grinned maliciously, pushing at the blonde's shoulder once more.

"Make me!"

Serena gritted her teeth, eyes darkening. "I'm telling you to stop and I mean it!"

Diamond rolled his eyes, not at all fazed by the threat. He reached forward, grabbing a hold Serena's pigtail and yanked down on it rather hard. Serena gasped when she felt her head jerk painfully to the side and before she knew it, she had reared her hand back and slapped Diamond clean across the face. Amy fell back against the wall, letting off a surprised gasp, completely at a lose for words.

Diamond stumbled back and raised a hand to his throbbing cheek startled. Now angry, the boy charged forward, shoving into Serena and causing the blonde to slam her back up against the wall behind her. Letting off a soft cry, Serena leaned against the wall, glaring upon the smirking Diamond with all her might. Without any warning, Serena stepped off the wall and head butted the boy in the face. Diamond dropped to the floor in a crumpled heap, grabbing at his blood gushing nose.

"You stupid idiot!" screamed Diamond, panicking at the amount of blood pooling in his hands. He looked up at Serena with wild rage filled eyes and the blonde smirked, placing a hand on her hip and pointing a wagging finger at him.

"I told you to stop!" She suddenly frowned as she felt a warm trail of liquid run down her forehead and off the tip of her nose. Swiping at the bridge of her nose, her eyes widened as she saw her finger tips coated in blood. Dabbing at her forehead, she inhaled sharply as she felt a jolt of pain rush through her.

"Oh my gosh Serena! You're bleeding!" exclaimed Amy, dropping her books to the floor and rushing to the blonde's side. She pushed Serena's hand from her forehead and began to examine the blonde's self inflicted wound. Amy quickly reached down into the pocket of her skirt and pulled out a white bubble imprinted handkerchief. She folded it up in her hands and pressed it against Serena's forehead.

"You're bleeding badly!"

Serena's eyes welled with tears. "What do I do?"

"We…" Amy was cut short as she was suddenly shoved to the side. Serena let out a startled gasp as Diamond suddenly stood before her, blood pouring from his nose, eyes wild and crazed, fist raised back and ready to strike.

"What's going on out here?!"

Diamond, Serena, and Amy snapped their heads towards their teacher who stood in the hallway, hands upon her hips, and a deep frown upon her face. Her brows suddenly furrowed as she noticed the children in their bloody state.

"Oh my…what happened!" she quickly made her way to her three students, shifting her eyes down upon Amy.

"Amy, are you alright?" When the blue haired child nodded, Mrs. O'Neal continued. "Alright, go on back to class."

Amy nodded, quickly making her way back to her books and gathering them up. Without a word, she scurried off and made her way back into the classroom. Mrs. O'Neal turned her attention back onto Diamond and Serena, taking the both of them by the arm and pulling them towards the nurse's station. She began asking questions upon question that neither Diamond nor Serena paid any heed too because the duo were too busy glaring each other down.

Author: ^_^ So what do you think?! Tsk Tsk, Serena fighting on the first day of school. Who would of thought?! Yes this is part one, I'm still trying to decide if I'm going to make a part 2 that has all that I'm plotting in it or divide the info up in two more parts... I don't know! ^_^ I hope to have the next chapter up soooooon! Please review!


	10. B1: Chapter 9

Author: Thanks so much for the reviews you guys! I also re-edited 6. Chapter 5, had an error a reviewer brought to my attention and I have finally fixed, so feel free to re-read that chapter. Well here's part 2 ^_^ hope you enjoy!

Disclaimer: Don't own Sm

Amara sighed deeply, looking upon her escort from the corner of her eyes. The short haired blonde could feel the woman's eyes on her and knew the woman was wondering why she was wearing the boys' school uniform. Rolling her eyes at the thought, she gave the smallest hint of a smile as she began to look about the hallway lazily. Her brows furrowed as she her eyes settled on a young girl with shoulder length sea-green wavy hair walking in her direction. She held what appeared to be a violin case in her hands and as they crossed paths, emerald green met turquoise and for some unknown reason, Amara's heart began thump wildly in her chest.

The young girl smiled before breaking eye contact with the blonde and continued her way down the hallway. Amara swallowed deeply, turning from the girl's retreating back, her heart finally slowing its rapid pace. She quickly shifted her eyes to her escort, noticing that the woman was looking straight ahead and seemed oblivious to the whole transaction that happened just a few seconds ago. Furrowing her brows, she shifted her eyes to the floor.

''_What was that?_' _thought Amara; _although_, _she didn't have time to dwell on the question as the woman, who had yet to introduce herself, had stopped before a door, proceeding to knock on it and wait patiently for the teacher to come and greet them. Soon enough, a tall, young and slender woman came to the door way, with a rather bright smile upon her face. She had long curly raven hair and she shifted her dark red eyes with specks of gold upon Amara.

"Ms. Caudell, this is your new student Amara Tenoh." replied the woman. Ms. Caudell arched a brow upon Amara's attire, knowing that she had been told her student would be female.

Replacing her look of confusion with a smile, Ms. Caudell spoke. "It's nice to meet you Amara." The short haired blonde gave a curt nod before settling her gaze to the floor, causing her teacher to arch her brow once more.

"Well thank you for bringing Amara to me, Ms. Kelly."

Ms. Kelly nodded, turning and began to head down the hall. "No problem."

Ms. Caudell turned to Amara and began to lead the blonde into the classroom. "Alright, let's get you settled in with the others." Amara didn't respond and silently followed after her teacher, hands buried in the pockets of her slacks.

"Students, listen up! We have a new student today. Her name is Amara Tenoh." The class quickly quieted down and their full attentions were drawn to the indifferent 9 year old standing before them. Amara's persona hardened as she heard her classmates whispering about her and she turned from them, drawing her attention towards the teacher. The woman was scanning the desks, than finally pointed to a seat.

"Amara, please take a seat over there." The young blonde nodded, making her way silently to her seat as her teacher mumbled something about getting her school books. Amara ignored all the eyes that she could feel boring in to her and quickly found her seat. She scanned her surrounding hastily, ignoring her classmates' gazes. She realized that there was an empty seat beside hers and she began to wonder if anyone occupied it.

Deciding not to let her mind wander on it, she looked to the front of the classroom as the door opened. Amara narrowed her eyes as the girl she had seen in the hallway entered the room and smiled upon the teacher. Ms. Caudell returned the smile, standing straight from her hunched position over her desk.

"Sorry I'm late; I had to talk to the music teacher." Replied the girl as she handed her teacher a slip.

Ms. Caudell took the small piece of paper with a nod of her head. "That's alright Michelle, please find your seat."

The girl now known as Michelle nodded and Amara watched as the girl walked down the aisle and take the seat that was next to hers. Swallowing deeply, she straightened in her seat, not understanding why she felt so nervous around this girl. Amara suddenly froze as Michelle shifted her gaze upon the blonde, a brow arched slightly.

"I just seen you in the hallway, didn't I?" Amara's only response was a nod of the head, causing a smile to touch at the corners of Michelle's mouth.

"I thought so. I'm Michelle by the way."

"Amara." replied the blonde, raising her hand out to the girl. Michelle arched a brow at the gesture, before slowly slipping her hand in the blonde's and gave a light shake.

"Nice to meet you." whispered Michelle, eyes scanning the blonde's attire, arching her brow once more.

"Why are you wearing the boys' uniform?"

Amara blinked, completely taken aback by the blunt question. "What?"

Michelle locked her eyes upon Amara's. "You're a girl, why are you wearing the boys' uniform?"

Amara narrowed her eyes a little startled. No one has ever automatically assumed she was a girl…no one!

"How'd you know I'm a girl?"

Michelle's mouth fell slightly agape, now taken aback herself. "Well..eh…because."

Now it was Amara's turn to arch a brow. "Because?"

"Because you're too pretty to be a boy." Amara's brows shot up at the statement and Michelle's face became a startling red.

"I-I-I mean y-you have girly features…" stuttered Michelle, eyes glaring down at her desk. Amara suddenly began to giggle and Michelle shifted her eyes towards to blonde, looking upon the girl as if she had lost her mind.

"What's so funny?" snapped Michelle, her ears now turning deep red as well.

Amara stifled her giggles, grinning upon the embarrassed girl beside her. "Nothing…it's just…I've never been told I have girly features. It sounds funny hearing it."

"Oh." Michelle let a smile lighten her features and shifted her eyes upon Amara, feeling shy all of a sudden. "I see."

Before Amara could say anything else, her teacher came before her, a pile of text books in her hands. Sighing deeply, Amara frowned as the teacher placed the books on her desk and began to ramble on about what they were currently learning in class.

Hopefully today would be interesting…

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Elaine walked through the cafeteria, tray clutched in her hands as she was maneuvering through other doctors and nurses getting food. Finding an empty table, she quickly took a seat and placed her tray down on the table. Sliding the straps of her purse off her shoulder, she placed the bag upon her lap and scooted her seat in closer to the table. Unraveling her roast beef sub sandwich, Elaine looked up, spotting her friend Amelia Mizuno heading in her direction.

The blue haired woman smiled, making her way to the table and taking a seat across from her friend. "I haven't seen you in a few days, where have you been?"

Elaine grinned. "You remember me telling you about how Ken and I were going to go into foster care right?"

Amelia nodded, unraveling her own turkey sub sandwich. "I remember."

"Well we got two girls last week and I took some vacation days to get the girls settled in."

Amelia's eyes widened with excitement. "Oh my God! That's so great Elaine! What are their names? How old are they? What are they like?"

Elaine giggled, reaching into her purse and pulling out her camera. Turning it on, she turned to the image of Ken and the girls sleeping on the bed and handed the camera to her friend so she could see. Amelia giggled at the picture, though her smile slowly turned into a frown as she inspected the picture more closely.

"What are their names?"

Elaine furrowed her brows upon seeing her friend frown. "Amara and Serena Tenoh."

Amelia knitted her brows, shifting her dark blue eyes upon the lavender haired woman. "I know them…I'm the one that did surgery on Amara's eye."

"What…you did?"

The surgeon nodded. "Yeah…" she shook her head. "My heart broke when I seen her face…I couldn't believe someone would do something like that."

Elaine shook her head, "I was mortified after hearing all that they have been through from their social worker…they seem like really good kids. I don't understand why someone would do something like that." Taking a sip of her sweet tea, Elaine shifted her eyes upon her friend once again, deciding to change the subject.

"So how are your girls?"

Amelia smiled, handing the digital camera back to Elaine. "Michelle is doing great in school and she sounds amazing on the violin…she's so much like her father." Sadness suddenly filled the woman's eyes, but only for a split second as her thoughts quickly turned onto her youngest child.

"Amy is doing exceptional in school!" a frown soon appeared on her face. "But she's still rather shy. She hardly talks anymore and she keeps herself locked up in her room whenever she's home and reads and studies all the time. It's starting to worry me."

"Maybe your girls can come over and play with mine. I'm pretty sure Serena can get Amy to open up a bit more." Elaine smiled warmly, thinking of the very talkative and bubbly child. "The girls started school today, I wonder if any of your girls share a class with mine.

Amelia smiled. "We'll have to do that then…that would be nice if they both shared a class with my girls."

"Great, I call you sometime this week and get that set up." The two women were interrupted as a nurse came to the table, a bit flustered.

"Dr. Mizuno. I've been looking for you everywhere."

"Why, what's wrong?" questioned Amelia, brows furrowed in worry.

"I need you to come with me, it's any emergency." She then shifted her eyes upon Elaine. "You have an urgent phone call yourself."

"From who?"

"Juuban Elementary." Elaine stood abruptly to her feet followed by Amelia.

"I'll take to you later." called Elaine as she quickly exited the cafeteria to head to the phone in her department. Amelia turned towards the nurse and followed after the woman to her own department within the hospital.

-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-

Amelia followed the nurse and suddenly arched a brow as she was lead to her own office. She turned to the nurse questioningly, but the brunette only pointed towards the door.

"They're in there."

"Thank you." Amelia whispered, mind pondering over what could possibly going on. With a deep sigh, she stepped towards the door and upon entry, spotted two police officers standing beside a woman dressed in a business suit as she sat in a seat before Amelia's desk. The woman stood, raising out a well manicured hand.

"I am Setsuna Meioh, I need a word with you."

Amelia slowly nodded, walking around her desk to take a seat in her chair. She silently sat, wondering why she suddenly felt sick to her stomach. Trying to shake off the eerie feelings that began to cloud her mind, she turned her attention back onto Ms. Meioh.

"So what do you wish to speak about?"

Setsuna retook her seat, a solemn expression coming across her face. "I believe you are friends with the Kinos, am I correct?"

The blunette narrowed her eyes, confused by the sudden question. "Yes, Natalie and I are pretty close…what is this about?"

"The Kinos and two of their children were found dead in their home this morning." replied Setsuna.

Amelia could have sworn her heart stopped in her chest as her eyes rapidly filled with tears. "What…?" She suddenly paused, resting a shaky hand upon her forehead. "What are you talking about?"

Setsuna swallowed deeply as she too was disturbed by the information she had been informed about on the Kino family's deaths. Clearing her throat, she looked upon the surgeon's tear stained face, feeling a bit of remorse welling inside her as well.

"The mother, father, and the boy had suffered gunshot wounds. As for the infant …she had been drowned."

Amelia swallowed deeply, apparently in shock. Her mind was racing a mile a minute, wanting to know who would possibly do this to them…they were such good people.

"Who did this?"

"We're not sure; the case is under investigation as we speak. The eldest daughter had been wounded as well, but she is alright. She is unwilling to speak of what had happened, in which I can fully understand why. This experience must have been very traumatizing for her and will take some time to heal all of the emotional scars."

Amelia shifted her eyes upon Setsuna, nodding in agreement with the woman's statement. "What's going to happen to Lita?"

Setsuna pulled out a large manila folder from her briefcase and set it down on the desk before her. "She is why I am here. Being that the girl has no other relatives; you were placed down as sole guardian if anything were to happen to the parents." Setsuna sighed deeply, straightening herself in her seat.

"We need to know if you are willing to take custody of Lita. If not, she will be placed in the orphanage until a foster family will take her or until she is adopted."

Amelia shook her head, completely against the going to a orphanage. "No, I will take her."

Setsuna sighed with relief and couldn't help the smile that came upon her face. "Alright! Great, I will need you to sign some documents and then I will discuss some procedures you need to follow."

Amelia nodded slowly, wiping the tears from her eyes. "Where is Lita? You said she was injured."

"Lita is here, she just got back from surgery about 20 minutes ago." Setsuna pulled out some documents from her manila folder and settled them on down the table.

"Let's begin."

-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-

Elaine rounded a corner, seeing the entry way of her department. Hurriedly making her way through the glass double doors, she quickly came around the front desk, looking down at a startled receptionist.

"Something about an urgent phone call?" questioned Elaine.

The receptionist nodded. "Yes." She picked up the phone pressing a button. "Here you go."

Elaine quickly took a hold of the phone and brought it to her ear. "Hello?" The nurse watched silently as Elaine's eyes narrowed dangerously close.

"A fight in school?"

Elaine's eyes suddenly widened. "It involves Serena?!"

Elaine gripped the phone more tightly as she felt fear welling inside of her. "Is she alright…what's going…"

Elaine trailed off as her attention was suddenly drawn to the doors as they were thrown open when the paramedic staff burst through them. The phone slipped from her hands as she spotted a wailing Serena flailing wildly on the gurney that was heading towards the emergency room.

"Damn it man! How hard is it to fasten down a child!" exclaimed one of the paramedics as Serena's fist hit him cleanly across the jaw.

Another paramedic who was holding the child's legs down glared at the complaining man. "I don't see you trying anything!" he cried, dodging the blonde's foot as it had it escaped him and came hurling towards his face.

Elaine felt her blood run cold as she saw the complaining paramedic's hands were coated in blood. "Serena…"

Author: Well that's the end of part 2, hope you enjoyed! I see that I'm getting closer to 100 reviews please keep reviewing you guys!! I hope to have part 3 up soon!


	11. B1: Chapter 10

Author: Thanks so much for the reviews! I really appreciate it and I hope you enjoy the chapter!

Disclaimer: Don't own sm.

Serena glared at Diamond heatedly as she was nearly being dragged down the hallway by her teacher. She knew the woman was talking to them both but none of that was important. Her full attention was locked upon the violet eyed boy who was using his forearm to wipe the blood from his face. On closer inspection, she realized that besides the fact that she may have broken his nose, she also gave him a gash on the bridge of his nose as well and she couldn't help the satisfied smirk that came upon her face.

She stuck her tongue out at the boy once more before the trio stopped in front of the door that led to the nurse's office. As soon as Mrs. Maxwell released her hold on Diamond's arm to open the door, the young boy screamed, causing the teacher to jump startled. Before the woman could register what was happening, Diamond lunged at Serena and the pair fell to the ground in a tangled heap.

Serena let off a small yelp of surprise as she suddenly found herself slamming her back onto the cold tiled floor below her. She gasped when she felt Diamond's body weighing her down as he straddled her waist and placed his hands around her throat. Serena gagged, immediately trying to pry his hands off of her neck when his hold tightened. She could vaguely hear her teacher yelling at Diamond to stop and could somewhat see the woman pulling on the boy's shoulders frantically.

Ignoring the blood that was leaking on to her face from Diamond's wounds, Serena took her fingernails and dug them within the boy's hands, clawing at the flesh viciously and drawing blood. Diamond howled in pain, releasing his grip around the blonde's throat and Serena took this moment to push him back, making him roll off of her. When the boy quickly climbed to his feet and made a mad dash towards her; Serena, who was still lying on the floor, drew her knees to her chest and kicked as hard as she could. The unexpected blow landed upon the boy's chest, his feet nearly leaving the floor as his back slammed into the wall behind him.

Sliding to the floor completely stunned, Diamond grabbed at his chest as Serena sat up, clutching at her rapidly bruising neck. Clenching a hand into a tight fist, eyes darkening and a low growl escaping from deep within her, Serena slowly climbed to her feet and wiped at the blood staining her face. Before she was only upset, now she was pissed the fuck off and was going to make this boy pay for causing her pain; a smirk that would normally appear on Amara's face came upon her own…

Diamond really crossed the line!

Mrs. Maxwell snapped out of her surprised stupor when Serena suddenly kicked the hell out of Diamond. Now she felt fear rising within her as she saw the dark look that promised a world of pain come across her new student's face.

She had to put a stop to this!

Taking a quick step forward, the teacher was able to grab a hold of the blonde's arm before she lunged herself upon Diamond, who still sat on the floor clutching at his chest. She whirled the small blonde around, nearly losing her grip on the girl when the child growled at her. Now more determined to separate the two, she pulled Serena towards the nurse's door once more and heavily pounded on the door, wondering how the nurse hadn't heard all of the commotion. When Nurse Adams came to the door, her eyes widened as they landed on Serena's face that was caked in blood; she snapped her eyes up towards the teacher.

"Wha..What happened?!"

Mrs. Maxwell sighed deeply as she tightened her hold on the now struggling blonde. For someone so small, she was pretty damn strong and her teacher was having a hard time keeping her grip on her. Before speaking, she hoisted Serena up and moved towards the nurse's office as the nurse stepped aside to let her in. The nurse suddenly let off a small gasp as she spotted Diamond sitting on the floor, holding his chest and drenched in blood as well.

"These two have been fighting and I think they need medical attention!" exclaimed Mrs. Maxwell.

The nurse turned towards the teacher, noting that the woman was definitely right. "I'm going to call for an ambulance. Do you think you can manage these two for a few moments?"

The teacher nodded, knowing she really didn't have any other choice. The nurse quickly disappeared as Mrs. Maxwell held onto Serena, standing in the doorway so she could keep her eyes on Diamond as well. She was softly pleading to the blonde to calm down, but the 7 yr. old just wasn't having it! Soon enough the nurse returned, with two towels in her hands.

She handed one to Mrs. Maxwell. "They're on their way and I have spoken to the principal as well, so that he knows what is going on." Turning away from the teacher, she made her way to Diamond, kneeling before the dazed and confused boy and began to dab at his face with a towel.

Mrs. Maxwell suddenly gasped, alerting the nurse. "I left my student s by themselves!"

"No worries, Principal Jonas is sending someone to watch over your class for you." The teacher smiled in relief. A few moments rolled on by as she held the towel to Serena's still bleeding forehead, tightening her hold once more on the blonde and silently watching the nurse trying to control the blood gushing from Diamond's nose.

Soon enough, the hallway was soon crowded with two sets of paramedical teams, both pushing a gurney towards the two children and women. The first team effortless retrieved Diamond and settled the boy on the bed and quickly wheeled him off. Unfortunately for the other paramedic team, the blonde was still relentlessly trying to escape from her teacher's arms, growling insanely as she watched Diamond disappear from her line of vision.

Serena's eyes widened in alarm as two men grabbed a hold of her and she began to panic, wildly thrashing about. Within her hysteria, she did not hear the teacher or the paramedics trying with all their might to console and calm her down. Unable to restrain the girl, the paramedics decided to hold the girl down by hand and wheel the screaming child out of the building; teachers and students looking outside their classrooms staring after them in curiosity.

-\-\-\-\-\-\-

Elaine quickly walked around the receptionist desk, making her way to the screaming child and the two highly aggravated paramedical guys trying to control her. She quickened her pace when she heard the small blonde screaming for her sister and began kicking her legs and swinging her arms more urgently when one of men pushed her back down on the bed by the shoulders.

"Serena!"

The small blonde froze in mid strike as she was ready to punch out the guy who had just pulled her back down to the bed, stopping her escape attempt. The paramedics took advantage of her startled moment and quickly found the straps to the gurney and strapped the child down to the bed. Once Serena realized her predicament, she was about to start thrashing and screaming again, when she suddenly saw Elaine's worried face hovering over hers.

Elaine chewed her bottom lip, seeing the deep gash upon the child's forehead and she felt her hands clench upon seeing the bruises around the girl's neck. She narrowed her eyes, looking upon Serena who was staring back at her with tear filled eyes. Elaine brushed away the tears with a hand and then pulled back Serena's blood coated bangs from her eyes.

"What happened?"

Serena took a shaky breath as her bottom lip began to quiver. "Diamond…he started it." She closed her eyes, expecting an outburst from the woman, waiting for the rain of insults and blows to the body like her father would have done. Though, she slowly opened her eyes to see that Elaine was looking upon her intently, deep concern flooding her eyes.

Seeing that the blonde had considerably calmed down, the paramedics took this time to slowly wheel the child towards the emergency room, with Elaine walking with them, still running her fingers through the blonde's hair.

"Tell me everything that happened, Serena."

Serena slowly nodded as she tried to steady her breathing. "It started when I first got to my classroom and my teacher told me to go to a seat she picked out for me. Well, when I was going to my seat, Diamond tripped me and caused me to fall and everyone started laughing…I told the teacher and she sent him to the Principal's office."

Elaine felt anger rising in her as Serena began to tell her the story, already wanting to give this Diamond boy a piece of her mind! "What happened next?"

Serena closed her eyes as she fully calmed her resolve and began to feel a dull ache in her head. "Well, he didn't come back to class. Anyways, I asked the teacher if I could go to the bathroom, she said I could and that's what I went to do. When I was leaving the bathroom, I saw Diamond coming down the hallway, so I started to go back in the bathroom because I didn't want him to bother me. When I couldn't see him anymore, I heard someone scream. I came out of the bathroom to see what was going on and Diamond was picking on a girl Amy from my class in the hallway."

Elaine narrowed her eyes upon the name. "Amy? What is her last name?"

"I don't know, but she has really cool blue hair."

Elaine smiled; she knew exactly who Amy was. "So what happened after you saw that."

"Diamond knocked the books from Amy's hands and that's when I told him to leave her alone! So he started pushing me and I kept telling him to stop. He then pulled my hair and I slapped him across the face…I didn't mean too it just happened!"

Serena furrowed her brows at the memory, "He didn't like that too much and shoved me into the wall. It really hurt so I head butted him in the face!" Elaine couldn't stop her jaw from dropping, ignoring the sniggers the two paramedics made as they were too listening intently to the story.

"You head butted him?!"

"I sure did! He should have stopped when I told him too!" Serena frowned in distaste as she thought about the rude boy. "We were about to go at it again but the teacher stopped it. She told Amy to go back to class and she took both me and Diamond to the nurse's office. When we got there, my teacher let go of Diamond to open the door and that's when he tackled me to the floor and started choking me. I scratched his hands up and pushed him off of me. When he tried to run at me, I kicked him in the chest and he flew into the wall. I was really going to mess him up after that but my teacher held me back."

Elaine watched as Serena's frown deepen and could tell that the girl wasn't satisfied with the outcome of the fight. She suddenly looked around her surroundings and noticed that they were now within the emergency room and was surrounded by nurses and doctors getting equipment to fix and clean up the blonde. She quickly grabbed a stool that was in the room and sat beside Serena, continuing to run her fingers through the blonde's hair in a motherly fashion.

"Alright Serena, we will talk about this more later. Right now the doctor needs to look at you and see what they need to do."

Serena shifted fearful eyes upon the nurses moving around her and the doctor who stood beside her, eyeing the wound upon her forehead, a clipboard held tightly in his hand.

"Are you going to leave me?"

Elaine's felt her heart cracking, hearing the fear and desperation in the Serena's voice. She took a hold of the child's small hands into her own and held onto them tightly.

"I'm not going anywhere…"

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Darien grinned, taking a seat with his two best friends; Andrew and Melvin. Sitting in between the two, Darien picked up his slice of pizza and took a bite as both of his friends were hungrily devouring their own slices.

"I love pizza day!" exclaimed Andrew, mouth full and tomato sauce on his face.

Darien laughed, taking a bite from his own. "I know! This food is so much better than my last school!"

"Really?" questioned Melvin, fixing his thick glasses upon his face and taking a bite of his pizza.

"Way better!" exclaimed Darien, swallowing down a mouth full.

Melvin shifted his glasses once again, turning to his two friends. "Hey did you hear about that fight that happened before lunch?"

"What fight?" asked both Darien and Andrew in unison.

"I heard it was between Beryl's little brother Diamond and some new girl in his class."

"He hit a girl?" asked Darien a bit incredulous, though the surprise slightly dissolved…he was Beryl's little brother and new he caused a lot of trouble...but… actually hitting a girl?!

The trio's conversation was suddenly dropped as their classmate Beryl Kurotsuki suddenly stood from her seat, rage burning in her dark green eyes.

Andrew narrowed his eyes upon the girl he didn't like in the least. "What is she up too?"

"Whatever it is…its trouble." muttered Melvin. Darien's eyes narrowed as well as he watched the girl leave from the table and head to another lunch table that contained another class. He watched as she came up to a boy that was happily chatting with a girl with wavy sea-green hair. Darien zeroed in on the boy's appearance, suddenly struck with déjà vu as he caught sight of emerald green eyes.

"I've seen him before…" whispered Darien.

Andrew arched a brow, not understanding what the ebony haired boy had said. "What was that?"

Darien shook his head, not taking his eyes off of the boy who was oblivious to what was about to happen. He turned around fully in his seat to see more clearly when Beryl shoved the boy from behind, causing his pizza to fall to the floor and his milk to spill across the table.

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Amara was chatting merrily with Michelle, unable to believe that she was actually talking this much…and with someone she had just met to top it all off! The blonde picked up her slice of pizza and was ready to take the first bite, when she was suddenly shoved from behind. She fell into the table, shoving her lunch tray into her open container of milk, causing it to spill over on the table. Her pizza slipped from her hand, bouncing off the edge of the table, than falling to the floor with a splat.

Completely outraged, Amara whirled around in her seat, hands already balled up into tight fists and ready to strike. Her gaze landed on a girl a bit shorter than she, dark green eyes filled with silent rage and curly fire red hair that cascaded down her shoulders.

The blonde sneered upon the girl. "What's your problem?!"

Beryl returned the sneer. "You tell your sister she just messed with the wrong person!"

Amara narrowed her eyes into slits. "What are you talking about? Serena wouldn't mess with anybody!"

"Oh really? She sent my brother to the hospital right before lunch."

Amara's brows suddenly shot up in surprise. "Really?"

At Beryl's nod, a small pout came upon the blonde's face. "Man! I missed it!"

Beryl frowned, completely baffled. "You what?"

Amara shifted her eyes towards the red head with narrowed eyes, a smirk touching at her lips. "I said I missed it, Serena never gets into fights! Your brother did something that made her really mad so he deserved it."

Beryl clenched her jaw, balling her own hand into a fist. "You just tell her she better watch her back!"

Amara leaned back against the table, her smirk deepening and an eyebrow arched. "Now why would I do that?"

"Because I'm going to beat her up."

"No you won't."

"I won't?" questioned Beryl, slightly appalled by this boy. Nobody tells her what she is and isn't going to do! She was Beryl Kurotsuki damn it!

"Yep!" grinned Amara. "Because if you go anywhere near her I will pound your face in."

Beryl's jaw fell slightly agape and began sputtering. "Y-y-you can't d-d-do that!"

Amara furrowed her brows in confusion. "Why not?"

"Because you're a boy! You can't hit me!"

"Who said I was a boy?"

The stunned expression on Beryl's face was priceless. "Huh?"

"Well…since you seem to be slow, I'll explain it to you! I'm a girl and I will pound on you until your whole face is black and blue if you touch my sister… and that goes for your brother too!"

A whistle suddenly sounded off, signaling it was time for recess. Amara reached down to the floor and picked her now inedible slice of pizza and tossed it on her tray. She stood to her feet, completely ignoring Beryl and turning her attention towards a very wide eyed Michelle.

"Come on; let's go to the playground Michelle!"

Only able to nod, Michelle stood from her seat, retrieving her lunch tray and following after the blonde.

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Andrew abruptly turned from the stunned Beryl, looking at his friends with wide eyes. "Woah! Did you see that!?!"

"Yeah! That was amazing! No one has ever talked to Beryl like that!" exclaimed Melvin.

Andrew nudged at Darien's shoulder playfully. "You need to hang out with her! Maybe she can get Beryl to leave you alone!" he laughed but he soon frowned as Darien didn't acknowledge him. His eyes were locked upon Amara as she and Michelle walked passed them, emptying their trays and handing their trays to the lunch lady. They both made their way towards the double doors to go outside and Darien abruptly stood to his feet, picking up his tray that held his barely eaten pizza and quickly did away with it, hurriedly making his way to the doors.

"Dare! Where you going?" questioned Andrew, only receiving silence as his answer. He and Melvin quickly stood from their seats as well, following the lunch tray procedure and quickly tried to catch up to the boy.

Darien didn't acknowledge his friends; all he wanted to do is talk to this Amara girl. If he was correct like he knew he is, then she is Serena's big sister that he didn't get to meet back at the orphanage. That would probably explain that feeling of déjà vu he had a few moments ago. Going through the doors that lead to the playground and scanning the area thoroughly, he spotted the blonde tomboy sitting on top of the globe shaped jungle gym with Michelle sitting beside her.

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Michelle ran her slender fingers through her wavy hair, shaking her head slightly before snapping.

"Are you insane!?"

Amara arched a brow, turning towards her friend. "What do you mean?" Michelle's jaw dropped before snapping her mouth shut and placing her hands on her temples, closing her eyes and began massaging them for a few moments.

"That whole scene in the cafeteria! Do you know who Beryl is?!"

The blonde smirked, shrugging her shoulder. "Nope! All I know is that she isn't going to touch my sister."

Michelle sighed heavily. "I understand that but Beryl is not one to mess…especially Diamond. The youngest, Sapphire seems to be alright…but I really don't know him."

Amara huffed, rolling her eyes. "What's so special about Beryl and Diamond?"

Michelle narrowed her eyes, staring off in front of her. "They're crazy…"

Amara threw her head back, letting off a roar of laughter. "Is that all?"

"Wha…" Michelle's eyes widened in disbelieve. "Is that all?! Beryl tried to drown a girl in the girls' bathroom two weeks ago...and…and Diamond…he's done some really messed up things… I hope you know this isn't over."

Amara shrugged her shoulders nonchalantly. "Well they can bring it."

"Hey!"

Both Amara and Michelle abruptly ended their conversation, turning towards a boy climbing up the jungle gym, two others not far behind him. The duo furrowed their brows as the boy who called out to them, stopped before Amara.

"Amara right?"

Amara arched a brow. "Yeah…why?"

"I'm Darien."

The blonde narrowed her eyes at the name. "Darien?"

"Yeah…I met Serena back at the Orphanage."

Amara smirked with a nod of the head in recognition. "So you're the one she keeps talking about?"

Darien's brows shot up in surprise. "She talks about me?"

"To the point that I had to tell her to shut up and that I would scream if she said another thing." Amara eyed the boy as she saw the faintest hint of a blush touch at his cheeks. He suddenly turned away from her, looking towards the two boys that were quietly sitting on the jungle gym behind him. Turning towards Amara again, he pointed towards the brunette with glasses.

"This is my friend Melvin." Amara gave the boy a nod as Darien pointed towards the blonde. "And this is my friend Andrew." Amara arched her brow while taking in the boy's features, noting that he looked rather familiar. Putting the thought behind her, she gave the boy a nod before shifting her eyes upon Michelle.

"This is Michelle." The boys nodded towards Michelle as the girl smiled at them with a small wave of the hand.

Amara then turned her attention back onto Darien. "Serena's going to be glad that I saw you."

"I don't want you to tell her you seen me."

Amara cocked her head in confusion. "What? Why not?"

"Well…I want her to see me for herself."

Amara nodded, not quit understanding. "Okay, I won't tell."

Darien grinned, "Thanks!" Bitting upon his bottom lip, he turned towards Amara curiously. "Have you seen Chad?"

Amara shifted her eyes towards her shoes with a hint of sadness within them. "No I haven't."

"Oh," whispered Darien. "I'm sure he'll turn up soon."

Amara smiled. "Yeah..."

"Hey…not to interrupt you guys but recess is almost over and I would like to get a game of tag in before when have to go back to class." Darien turned towards Andrew, who was grinning at him waiting for a reply, than to Melvin who was nodding his head in agreement.

"Want to play?" questioned Darien, turning back towards Amara.

The tomboy grinned, nodding her head. "Yeah!" she turned to Michelle. "Are you coming?"

Michelle returned the blonde's grin, "Yep!"

"Great! Let's go then!" exclaimed Andrew as the boy was already half way off the jungle gym. Darien and Melvin weren't far behind him and as Amara began to descend, Michelle placed a hand upon the girl's shoulder; pausing, Amara turned towards the girl questioningly.

"About what we were talking about earlier…just be careful around Beryl and Diamond…okay?"

Amara grinned. "I will and I can take care of myself…so quit worrying." She reached out a hand to Michelle so she could help her down the jungle gym. "Now come on!"

Michelle gave a slight smile and nodded. "Okay." She slipped her hand into the blonde's and allowed the girl to help her down. Once the pair touched ground, they quickly darted off towards Darien and his friends.

Author: Hope you enjoyed and please review!!!


	12. B1: Chapter 11

Author: Heck yea! I'm in the hundreds now on my reviews ^_^ appreciates it you guys. I know it's been a while since I've updated, but I just found out I'm having a kid and it has completely thrown me off track. Morning sickness sucks ass, but I'm dealing with it, been sleeping A LOT lately, so I haven't been working much on my fics, although I have been seriously brainstorming on this story. BUT!! I will try and not take too long on updating, so I hope you enjoy this installment!

Disclaimer: Don't own Sm

"Hey Dom!"

Dominique Kurotsuki turned in his leather swivel chair at his desk, looking up at his long time friend and fellow FBI agent.

"What's up Lonnie?" questioned Dom with an arched silver brow, drumming his fingertips along the top of his desk.

"You have an urgent call."

Dom furrowed his brows, dark green eyes looking upon the man worriedly. "From who?"

"Juuban Elementary."

Dom rolled his eyes exasperated, slouching back in his seat irritably. "Which one is it this time?"

"Diamond."

Dom sighed, beginning to rock back heavily in his seat. "God…these fucking kids! I swear those two are going to be the death of me." Abruptly leaning forward in his seat, he picked up the phone at his desk and then turned to his comrade whom was chuckling at the earlier comment.

"Hey, have you seen John?"

"No, he took the day off for his wife's birthday." Replied Lonnie as he propped himself up in the doorway of his friend's office.

"Oh yeah, I forgot about that! That reminds me, I need to wish Natalie a happy birthday." He turned his attention back to the phone. "What line is the school on?"

"3."

"Thanks." Dom leaned in pushing the flashing #3 button and placed the phone to his ear. He shifted his eyes towards the clock on his computer, seeing that it wasn't even noon yet. He rolled his eyes, his kids were now getting in trouble before lunch…this needs to stop!

Sighing heavily, he began to speak on the phone. "Hello Principal Jonas, what has my son done this time?"

Dom arched a brow at the man's words. "He attacked a girl…hospital…what?" The Agent placed his head against the palm of his hand with weariness and agitation. Standing from his seat, he held the bridge of his nose as he felt a headache coming on.

"Thanks, I'm heading there now…alright, bye." Placing the phone on the receiver, Dom slammed his fist down on his desk, causing the items upon it to rock from the unexpected blow. Straightening from his hunched position over his desk, he turned and left his office. He led himself towards his quarter's secretary, stopping at the desk with a small frown.

"The kids?" questioned the secretary as she noticed the look upon his face and Dom only nodded in response.

"I'll tell the Boss what's up."

"Thanks Angie." replied Dom, quickly leaving the desk and heading towards the door. Though, before he could exit, he was grabbed by the arm and was pulled into an office. Completely startled, he turned, noticing that it was his friend Lonnie that had grabbed a hold of him. He furrowed his brows as he stared upon his friend's pale complexion.

"Jesus Lonnie…you look like you've seen a ghost. What's wrong with you?" Lonnie ran a trembling hand through his shaggy blond locks. Swallowing deeply, he shifted his eyes upon the ground.

"It's John."

Dom furrowed his brows as he felt a knot forming in his throat and his heart constrict with foreboding agony. "What's… wrong? You just told me not too long ago that he was spending the day with his family."

When Dom saw a tear slip from Lonnie's eye, he felt fear override his senses. He grabbed his friend by the shoulders frantically.

"Damn it Lonnie! What's going on?!"

Lonnie shifted sorrow filled eyes upon his friend. "He's gone Dom…"

Now deeply confused, Dom stepped back from Lonnie. "Gone where?"

Lonnie shook his head. "They found him this morning…he and his family…"

"What's wrong with them!?" shouted Dom, unable to take the suspense any longer. "I don't understand what you're saying."

"They're dead."

Dom felt the air suck right out of his lungs as he stared at the blonde before him. Stuck in a stupor he shook his head in disbelieve, a smirk coming across his strikingly handsome face.

"No really…what's going on?"

Lonnie shifted his hazel eyes upon his friend, the most serious expression Dom had ever seen on the man. "I'm not kidding…John, Natalie, Aiden and Caitlyn were found dead in their home this morning and Lita was injured."

Dom felt his knees go weak as he pressed his back up against the wall behind him and slid down to the floor, eyes wide with shock and horror. Turning haunted eyes upon his 2nd best friend, he suddenly narrowed his brows, closing a hand into a tight fist.

"When…how…I mean I just seen him yesterday." The tears began to slip from his eyes and trail down his rapidly paling face, brows furrowing slightly.

"Who did it…who is responsible for this?"

"Natalie…"

Dom narrowed his eyes incredulously…he knew he had just heard that wrong "Wha..?"

"The forensics team is saying that Natalie may have caused their deaths, than committed suicide afterwards."

"No…that's not possible! Lee wouldn't do that!" He combed his fingers through his tussled locks.

Lonnie shook his head; he didn't want to believe it either. "Lee was found with a whole bottle of prescription drugs in her system and over a pint of alcohol in her system…"

Dom shook his head, not wanting to believe any of this. "What about Lita, you said she escaped…she knows what happened…right?"

Lonnie looked upon his friend with deep sadness and shook his head once more. " Lita won't speak about what happened…and I really don't blame her."

Dom ran a hand down his face…this had really topped his day and he had yet to deal with the situation about his son…

Damn it…today was not a good day.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Elaine sighed softly, scooping up a half-sleep Serena from the hospital bed and made her way out of the room. She silently walked down the rather crowded halls of the emergency room, quickly making her way to the receptionist desk to retrieve her purse and keys. Retrieving the said items and waving a farewell to the receptionist, she made her way expertly through the hospital and out of the building. She arched a brow when Serena suddenly let off a small gasp, which startled her.

Furrowing her brows, Elaine placed a hand on the blonde's back and began to rub it softly. "What's wrong?"

The small blonde shook her head, before burying her face into the crook of Elaine's neck. "Nothing."

"Okay." The lavender haired woman looked down at her watch. "Well Amara gets out of school in a few, I guess we'll head that way."

Serena nodded once more and Elaine silently made her way to her car. Unlocking the doors, she settled the blonde in the back seat, pausing to look at the large bandage on the girl's forehead. The small blonde had to get four stitches in her forehead and what Elaine found quit interesting was the shape the scar would form to be. Though, she snapped out of her reverie when the small blonde let off a small yawn as she buckled in her seatbelt. She drew her knees up to her chest, folding her arms upon them, and nestled her head within her arms.

Elaine patted the blonde on the head, knowing that the pain medicine she had taken was taking affect and the woman silently closed the door and made her way to the driver side door. Looking down at her watch again, she pulled out her cell phone, dialed a few numbers and brought the device to her ear. What she wasn't expecting was her husband's booming angry voice to answer the call. Wincing, Elaine pulled the phone slightly from her ear with a sigh.

"Ken…she's alright." She rolled her eyes, knowing the school had called him as well.

"Look I'll explain everything when we get home; I'm on my way to pick up Amara. I want you to pick up a pizza for dinner." After a few moments, Elaine smiled. "Love you too, we'll see you soon!"

Hanging up the phone, she placed the device back into her purse before tossing the bag into the backseat beside the now heavily sleeping Serena. Entering the car herself, Elaine quickly shifted the car into gear and began heading off to Juuban Elementary.

-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-

Diamond sighed heavily, tilting his head slightly to look up at his father. Turning away quickly, he shifted his eyes towards the floor…his father is pissed. No, that's an understatement…the man is fucking livid! Deciding not to say anything until his father spoke first, Diamond kept silent and the two soon found themselves out of the hospital and heading towards the police car in front of the said building.

Lightly touching his nose, Diamond winced as pain shot through him. That little blonde heathen had broken his nose with that critical head butt and although the cut across the bridge of his nose wasn't deep enough for stitches, it would still leave behind a pretty nice size scar…to top it off he had two black eyes.

Grinning sadistically at the thought he raised his head in time to see Serena and who he assumed to be her mother heading out of the hospital. He narrowed his eyes when the blonde stuck her tongue out at him, and frowning deeply, he flicked her off. He grinned in satisfaction as he saw the blonde's jaw drop in utter surprise.

Turning from her, he looked upon his father who was staring upon the small blonde intently. Dom couldn't tear his eyes away from the little girl, and he narrowed his eyes, scrutinizing the girl's features carefully.

"My God, she looks just like Ellen." He whispered softly in an almost dream like state.

Diamond arched a brow. "What was that Dad?"

Dom shifted his eyes upon his eldest son curiously, pointing a finger towards Serena and Elaine. "Do you know that girl over there?"

Diamond smirked. "Yep."

Now it was Dom's turn to arch a brow. "Who is she?"

Diamond turned, looking upon the disappearing blonde. "Serena Tenoh…the girl I'm going to marry."

Totally disregarding his son's last statement, Dom's eyes widened in utter disbelief; he knew exactly who this girl was. She was his ex-partner's daughter, though what he didn't understand was why she's here in Juuban…and who was that woman holding her…he had some researching to do when he got home! Opening the door to his vehicle, he quickly entered, followed by his son. Once the both of them were buckled in their seatbelts, he two drove off, heading for home.

-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-

School was finally let out and Amara and Michelle stood outside the school, leaning against the brick wall, patiently waiting for their ride. With them was Darien and Andrew, as Melvin had already run off to catch his bus. Amara scanned the crowd slowly, still not seeing her sister in sight and that worried her deeply. Michelle placed a comforting hand upon the blonde's shoulder, giving it a light squeeze.

"Don't worry, she'll show up!"

Amara smiled in thanks, turning to her new best friend. "I'm sure you're right…but for some reason I don't think she's coming."

Michelle furrowed her brows and was about to question the blonde, when she felt a small hand tugging her own. Turning slightly, she grinned, seeing that it was her younger sister Amy clinging onto her hand tightly.

"Hey Ames! How was your day?"

Amy smiled. "I made a new friend…" Her smile soon fell into a small frown. "But she had to leave early."

Upon the statement, Amara shifted her eyes towards to petite blunette curiously as Michelle cocked her head to the side in her own curiosity "Why what happened?"

"She stood up for me and got into a fight with that jerk Diamond."

Michelle gasped knowing exactly who she was talking about and Amara made her way to Amy. "Was her name Serena?"

Amy shifted her dark blue eyes up at the tall blonde. "Yeah, Serena Tenoh. You know her?"

The tomboy nodded. "Yeah, she's my little sister…is…is she okay?"

Amy ran her fingers through her short blue locks, adjusting her book bag on her shoulders as well. "She was alright until she head butted Diamond…it was the coolest thing I've ever seen…well till the blood started to pour."

Darien's and Andrew's eyes widened in surprise. "She head butted him?" they cried in unison.

At Amy's enthusiastic nod, Amara pouted. "Man…I can't believe I missed it! She actually head butted somebody!"

Andrew brows shot up into his hairline. "I can't wait to meet this girl."

_**HONK HONK**_

The conversation came to an abrupt halt as they spotted Elaine pull up in front of them. Amara quickly turned to her friends. "Well that's my ride. I'll see you guys tomorrow!"

"Bye Amara!" they all chorused.

Waving them all a goodbye, she began to head towards the car before she was suddenly violently shoved by the shoulder. Startled and completely outraged, she turned to see the grinning face of Beryl, before the red head disappeared into the crowd of leaving students. Amara growled, clenching her hands into tight fists.

"Wait till I get my hands on that girl." Threatened the blonde darkly, before completing her task of getting to the car and quickly climbed into the front seat. As she was placing her backpack into the backseat, her eyes widened and a sharp gasp escaped her as she saw the damage done upon her sister. She snapped her enraged eyes upon Elaine, who was staring upon the short haired blonde, not sure of what to say.

Amara suddenly unbuttoned her blazer and threw it down on the floor of the car and climbed out of the vehicle, and began heading towards the direction she had seen Beryl disappear in. Snapping out of her stupor, Elaine quickly unbuckled her seatbelt, jumped out of the car and chased after the blonde; Darien, Andrew, Michelle and Amy staring at the scene with wide eyes.

Elaine was able to grab a hold of Amara by the arm and spun the blonde towards her. "Amara stop!"

"Let me go!" snapped the blonde as she tried to pry off Elaine's death grip on her.

"No, you need to calm down."

"Calm down! Look at her neck it's completely black and blue!"

"I know honey but fighting isn't going to solve anything…beside he isn't here anyways."

"I know he's not, I'm going to take it out on his sister's face!"

"She has nothing to do with this."

Amara snarled. "She threatened to fight Serena when she found out she had a fight with her brother. I rather get to her first than she getting to my sister."

Elaine sighed deeply as she could feel the majority of the student body staring at them. Running her free hand through her hair, she squatted down to eye level with the outraged blonde.

"Look I know you're upset, hell I'm angry too. You beating that girl senseless isn't going to do anything but make things worse, so let's just go home and take care of your sister."

Amara's eyes slightly softened as she saw the silent rage stirring within Elaine's eyes. With a small frown, Amara nodded and Elaine released her tight hold upon the blonde. The lavender haired woman smiled, ruffling the girl's bangs affectionately.

"That's my girl…now come on." Standing to her feet, Elaine took a hold of Amara's hand and led the blonde back to the car and the duo silently entered. Elaine shifted her eyes towards the still sleeping Serena, then turned to the front windshield and slowly pulled off and out of the school zone.

After a few moments of silence, Elaine looked upon Amara from the corner of her eyes. "Does Serena get into fights often?"

Amara shook her head. "No…I usually do." The blonde turned, looking out of the window. "She's more like mom, she's really calm and it takes a lot to make her mad."

The tomboy suddenly chuckled. "I used to try and get her mad all the time when we were real little."

Elaine arched a brow at the statement. "Really?"

Amara nodded. "Yeah…I don't remember what I did but I know she knocked me out cold for about an hour. I had a black eye for three weeks." Amara chuckled once more. "I never messed with her in that way again."

The tomboy turned towards her foster mother. "I've seen Serena fight once before and that made me realize that I don't ever want to fight her." Amara furrowed her brows. "I maybe vicious when I fight, but Serena is merciless…she's a totally different person when she snaps…just like Mom." Amara's eyes glazed over. "I've only seen Mom snap once and that was when someone made a smart comment about the way I was dressed. She went crazy on that lady and beat her up in the middle of the grocery store."

Elaine furrowed her brows as she tightened her grip on the steering before her. She kept that little bit of information stored away so she could talk to her husband about it later. Narrowing her eyes, she could totally see the small blonde being completely merciless, just by the way she had described her fight with this Diamond boy back at the hospital.

Shaking the thought from her mind, she smiled softly, looking upon Amara once more. "Let's just hope no one makes her that mad again."

Amara smirked, looking at the scenery outside her window. "I highly doubt that…"

Elaine sighed. "For some reason I think you're right…"

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Diamond wiped the tears from his eyes, pulling up the slacks that hung around his ankles. He could hear his father placing his thick black leather belt back around the waist band of his pants. Glaring at the ground, Diamond made his way out of his father's study slowly as the newly formed welts on his back side was throbbing rather painfully.

His Dad had really done a number on him this time…he never hit him that hard for that long…EVER! Now the boy was beginning to wonder if his father was mad at something else besides him, though the thought quickly fled from his mind as he heard his mother calling for him from her bedroom down the hall.

Wiping away the rest of his tears with the sleeve of his shirt, he made his way to the slightly ajar bedroom door, seeing his mother lying on the bed, under a thick layer of blankets. Tears filled his eyes once more, but he stubbornly wouldn't let them fall…he really hated seeing his mother like this…in so much pain and agony.

He silently made his way towards the bed as his mother smiled down upon him warmly. "Why are you crying my boy?"

Diamond shifted shameful eyes to his feet. "Dad…"

The sickly pale woman upon the bed arched a brow. "Why?" she questioned, waving him closer to the bed. Diamond did as he was told and climbed up on the bed and settled himself in his mother's arms, resting his head against her chest. He closed his eyes, trying to block out her unsteady breathing.

"Another fight…"

She sighed deeply, hugging her son tightly. "You wouldn't be punished if you didn't misbehave. I would think you and Beryl would understand this by now."

"I know…I'm sorry." Whispered Diamond, as his tears began to soak his mother's nightgown. The woman was about ready to speak again, when she suddenly fell into a coughing fit. Diamond sat up startled and gasped as he saw his mother cough up blood on to her hand.

Quickly jumping off of the bed, ignoring the protests of his most recent wounds, Diamond grabbed the glass of cold water from the bedside table and handed it to his mother, before bolting out of the room screaming for his father's help.

Author: ^_^ Hoped you enjoyed and please review!!! Before any confusion arises Wallace Tenoh was not a cop, he was a drug trafficker. Also, Dom knows of Amara and Serena but never met them. I do hope to have the next installment out soon…


	13. B1: Chapter 12

Author: Thanks so much for the reviews!!!! I really had a hard time writing this chapter, I've re-written it like 3x and I guess I can say that I'm now satisfied. ^_^ hope you guys enjoy!

Disclaimer: Don't own Sm.

Elaine rolled over upon her bed for about the hundredth time, not getting a wink of sleep. Rolling over once more, she turned her head towards her clock, staring at the red blaring numbers of 6:48 am. Sighing heavily she rolled away from the clock, turning onto her stomach and folding her arms beneath her chin.

She hadn't been able to sleep last night, catching a little bit of the news after getting Amara settled into bed. It was a tragic story that happened in Yokohama, Japan where a mother had killed her husband, two of her children and injured the third, than she herself committed suicide when the 3rd child escaped. Even though this isn't the first time Elaine had heard of a tragic story such as that, but for some reason this particular one stayed on her mind and unnerved her a bit.

To get the story out of her head, she and Ken had stayed up majority of the night talking about what Amara had spoken to her about in the car, about her mother and Serena's anger episodes. Elaine couldn't help the small smile that came to her face, in all her days she would have never expected a phone call from school stating that her little bubbly blonde had been in a fight, let alone with a boy and was currently being rushed to the emergency room. Talk about a shocker!

_I may be vicious when I fight, but Serena is merciless…_

That one statement from Amara had circled around Elaine's mind the entire way home from the girl's school. Vicious and merciless was a bad combination, Amara and Serena weren't the ones you wanted to intentionally piss off. Now knowing that bit of information, she and Ken needed to keep a close eye on the girls and hopefully they would be able to prevent any future fights, but deep down, the lavender haired woman knew that would be impossible. Trouble seemed to trail its way behind those girls where ever they went, waiting for the right moment to rear its ugly head at every possible chance it got.

Shaking her head at the thought, Elaine's mind turned towards Ken's reaction when he had seen Serena when she and the girls had gotten home yesterday. She knew he would be upset, but he was beyond that, he was enraged! She basically had to threaten the man to stop him from going on a man-hunt to find Diamond and wring the boy's neck. Getting angrier that he couldn't go out and find this boy, he ranted and raged around the house for two hours, an act Amara found to be quite hysterical.

Laughing to herself, Elaine rolled back over and looked upon the clock once more, reading the numbers of 6:59 am. Sitting up in her bed, she turned and looked upon her husband who was currently out cold and snoring lightly. Hitting her alarm clock as it was about to go off, she leaned over and shook her husband awake, than climbed off the bed and made her way out of the room.

She made her way to Amara's room first, stepping inside and flicking on the lights to see the blonde was nowhere in sight. Arching a brow in confusion, she stepped out of the room, turning to go down the hallway and towards Serena's room. Going into the younger blonde's room, Elaine spotted Amara curled up beside her sister as the two were fast asleep.

Smiling softly, Elaine made her way across the room, shaking Amara awake. The blonde wearily opened her eyes, then suddenly shot up from the bed and looked about her in confusion. Her clouded half lidded eyes looked down upon the bed to see her sister sleeping by her side and she remembered that she came to sleep in her sister's room late last night. Hearing laughter, the tomboy shifted her gaze upon Elaine who had just placed a hand over her mouth to stifle her giggles.

Giggling once more at Amara's blush, Elaine helped the blonde out of the bed. "Go on and get ready for school, I'm going to get breakfast ready."

Amara nodded, stumbling her way across Serena's room still half asleep and made her way to her own room. Elaine shook her head, shifting her gaze upon Serena, quickly deciding not to disturb the child. She had a feeling that Serena wouldn't be going to school today and had already called her job last night and informed them of what had happened yesterday.

Closing Serena's bedroom door behind her, she made her way down the hallway and towards the stairs so she could go to the kitchen. Upon entering the said room, the phone rang and Elaine quickly grasped the ringing contraption and brought it to her ear.

"Hello?" she paused for a moment. "Yes, this is she." After another small pause Elaine nodded. "Alright, we'll be there." She replaced the phone on the receiver, making her way back upstairs to Serena's room. That was the principal on the other line and he wanted an explanation for the fight that had occurred and what they punishment maybe; now she and Serena had to be at the school at 8 o'clock.

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Elaine sighed heavily, turning to look up at Juuban's elementary school building. She turned to Amara, seeing the blonde unbuckling her seat belt and picking up her book bag from beneath her feet. She then looked up into the rear view mirror, spotting Serena who was in the back seat, gripping the strap of her seatbelt, a small frown upon her face as she stared up at her school as well. Elaine felt for the child, knowing that this was the last place she wanted to be. Unbuckling her seatbelt and shutting off the ignition to her car, Elaine opened up the door and began to climb out.

"Come on girls." She called out, closing the door behind her and making her way around to opposite side of the car. Serena didn't say a word, silently climbing out of the car and taking a hold of Elaine's hand once the woman had met at her side, Amara standing beside her as she placed her book bag on.

Elaine shifted her eyes upon Serena's attire, finding the blonde's outfit to be quite cute. It consisted of a light pink Kanglo cap pointed forwards, a long sleeved white and pink stripped shirt and a knee high length jean skirt, with white leggings and light pink Ugg boots. She had her hair in braided pigtails that trailed over her shoulders and still had the rather large ace bandage upon her forehead.

Tugging the girl along, Elaine quickly made their way to the school building, stepping inside and heading towards the main office. At this point, Amara separated from us and waved us goodbye.

"See you later!" she called as she began heading towards the direction of her classroom.

"Bye!" Elaine and Serena called in unison, than Elaine added. "Please stay out of trouble!"

Even though she couldn't see the blonde's face, she knew the girl was grinning madly. "I'll try!" called out Amara as she disappeared in the crowd of many children.

Elaine shook her head hoping she didn't get a phone call about Amara sending someone to the emergency, or worse, she herself going. She turned away from the massive crowd of child, heading towards the main office's entrance, heading inside with Serena.

Upon entering the room Elaine heard Serena suddenly growl and startled, the lavender haired woman shifted her gaze upon the small blonde curiously. She arched a brow as she saw Serena's eyes were narrowed dangerously close and she her upper lip curled up in disgust. Elaine followed the girl's gaze, her eyes settling upon a young police officer and boy who looked just like the man with two black eyes and a bandage over is nose.

'_Must be the boy Serena had a fight with…geeze looks like she really kicked his ass!'_ thought Elaine, hiding her grin of approval. She turned her gaze to the police officer for a moment. '_I guess that's his father…or they're planning on taking that brat to jail!' _Elaine shook her head at her wishful thinking.

Placing a hand upon the Serena's shoulder, Elaine moved the blonde to the other side of her so she could stop glaring at Diamond, afraid the boy would burst into flames over the heated gaze. From the corner of her eye, Elaine watched as the police officer glared menacingly down at this son, placing a firm hold on the boy's shoulder. She frowned slightly as she watched the man tighten his grip upon his son, causing the boy to wince in pain and turn his gaze away from Serena.

Though, everyone's attention was immediately drawn towards the large wooden oak door as the principal stepped out of his office. He smiled warmly, turning towards Elaine and Serena first.

"Please come in Mrs. Tsukino." Elaine nodded, ushering Serena into the room, the principal closing the door behind them.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Grandpa Hino, an old priest of the Hiwaka Shrine in Juuban turned in the driver seat of his vehicle, looking down upon his granddaughter as she stared absentmindedly out of the window. With a heavy sigh the old man placed a wrinkled hand on the girl's shoulder, breaking the child from her deep train of thoughts.

The raven haired girl turned from the window, settling amethyst eyes upon her the old man. "Yes, Grandpa?"

Granpa Hino bit back a grimace as his eyes gazed upon the dark black and blue bruise on the side of the child's face. Clenching a hand into a tight fist, he forced a grin upon his face and asked in a cheerful manner. "Are you going to come inside, Rei?"

Rei shook her head, turning to look out the window once more a frown forming upon her face. "No, I want to stay in the car."

The old man frowned at the response. "Are you sure?"

Rei didn't respond, only giving a curt nod as an answer. Grandpa Hino sighed once more before opening the door to his car and stepping out. He leaned back on the door, running a hand over his bald head. With a shake of his head, he stared up at Juuban's Orphanage for a moment before quickly advancing towards the front door of the large building. He wanted to get home as soon as possible so he could get his shrine up and running this morning. Stepping inside the building, he walked down the hallway, spotting Tassy walking in his direction.

The woman smiled, making her way towards him. "Hi, I'm Tassy. What can I do for you?"

The old man smiled, bowing slightly. "Hi, I'm Charles Hino. I had come by last week wanting to adopt-"

"Oh, you're here to pick up Chad! Yes, come this way Mr. Hino, he's outside." Finished Tassy, escorting the man down the long hallway and towards the playground where the children were playing.

She turned to Mr. Hino curiously. "I thought you were coming Friday?"

"Oh, my granddaughter made a surprise visit Friday and I had to get her settled in." To go in depth with the story, early Friday morning he found his granddaughter lying outside on his doorstep battered and bruised. Her bastard of a father left a note tied around her neck stating that Rei was his responsibility now and that he has become a politician and he couldn't be bothered with the girl any longer. Grandpa Hino tried to ask the girl who had hurt her, but Rei would only respond by blowing up, screaming and throwing things at him…and boy did she have aim!

Grandpa Hino had not seen his granddaughter in 7 years and that was on the day she was born in the hospital…and that was the day he had lost his only daughter due to pregnancy complications. That was the happiest day, yet the most tragic day he had ever experienced. Though, he fondly remembered holding Rei for a little while before her father whisked her away where he never saw her again until Friday morning.

Snapping out of his thoughts, Grandpa Hino turned towards Tassy as the woman nodded in understanding, leading the elderly man out onto the playground of the Orphanage. They made their way across the playground, spotting Chad leaning up against the fence with his head buried in his knees.

Grandpa Hino stopped before the boy, as Tassy kneeled down beside Chad and placed a hand upon his shoulder. "Chad."

The boy raised his head a little startled, arching a brow questioningly upon the older woman. Tassy smiled, pulling the boy to his feet. "Mr. Hino is here to take you."

Chad snapped his head towards the old man, a small smile coming across his face. "You came back."

The old man chuckled. "Of course I did my boy, why wouldn't I?"

Chad looked down at the ground, kicking at a rock with his foot. "Whenever a family meets me they don't want me anymore because of my burns." Tassy turned away from the boy, knowing the truth behind his words.

Grandpa Hino frowned at the boy's statement. "I see nothing wrong with you Chad." He waved the boy forward with a smile upon his face. "Now come along and let's go home."

Chad grinned; he quickly took a hold of the old man's outstretched hand and allowed him to lead him back through the Orphanage, Tassy ahead of them and leading them towards the bedrooms. Entering the room Chad slept in, the trio quickly packed boy's things and being that the old man had already dealt with Chad's paper work last week, they were able to leave the Orphanage rather quickly. Upon stepping inside and waving a final farewell to Tassy, Grandpa Hino led Chad towards his vehicle. Turning towards the boy, the old man cleared his throat.

"I wanted to give you a bit of a heads up."

Chad arched a brow questioningly, "On what Mr. Hino?"

"Call me Grandpa Hino and the reason why I didn't come and get you Friday is because my granddaughter has come to town and is going to live with us. "

Chad nodded, not seeing why he needed a heads up on that. "Okay…"

Grandpa Hino continued. "Well she hasn't been talking much and when she does it's usually her yelling…so the heads up is that she has a rather bad temper you need to be weary of."

Chad smiled, "That doesn't seem so bad."

The boy heard the old man snort. "That's what you think." The duo came to a small white car and Grandpa Hino ushered Chad to the trunk of the vehicle so the boy could put up his belongings. Once that task was performed, the boy was motioned to get into the back seat as Grandpa Hino resided to the front driver's seat. The old man quickly placed his keys into the ignition and then turned towards his granddaughter.

"Rei, I want you to meet Chad."

Rei sighed heavily, turning her head and shifting her eyes upon the shaggy haired boy in the back seat in boredom. She nearly sucked in her breath as she looked upon the grotesque burns decorating the boy's neck and her eyes quickly shifted to dark blue eyes.

Chad stared into her amethyst eyes, noting that he saw anger and pain raging within them. He smiled softy; she was like him in a way and he made a silent vow to get to know this girl that was now glaring at him heatedly. Ignoring the look, he reached out a hand for her to take.

"Hi, it's nice to meet you."

Rei looked down at his scarred up hand, slowly slipping her hand into his. She lightly shook it and then turned away, not saying a word to the older boy. Chad furrowed his brows, turning to look up at Grandpa Hino as the old man was looking back at him apologetically.

Turning in his seat, Grandpa Hino placed his seatbelt on. "Well, let's hurry on home." Murmured the old man as he shifted his car into drive and pulled out of his parking spot to head home.

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Elaine stepped out of the school building, Serena's hand held within hers. She reached down in her purse, pulling out her cell phone as it rang. Flipping it open, she looked down at the name, arching a brow, not expecting to see that particular name. Bringing the phone to her ear, she responded.

"Hello, Amelia?" Elaine furrowed her brows. "Are you alright?" pausing briefly, she shifted her eyes towards Serena who was staring back up at her curiously. "Well Serena and I were about to go and get something to eat…do you want me to get you something before we come over?" Elaine arched a brow. "Alright I see you soon."

Elaine quickly hung up her phone and replaced it back in her purse. "That was weird." muttered Elaine. Shrugging her shoulders, she began leading the girl to the car. "It looks like we have a change of plans, my dear." Before Serena could question the woman, Elaine was already settling the blonde in the car and was heading off to the nearest fast food joint.

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Serena gasped as she looked up at the massive condo complex before her, holding a huge bag filled with McDonald's goodness. Being caught up in her stupor, Elaine took a hold of the child's hand and escorted her towards the building, quickly making their way towards the elevator. Serena grinned happily when Elaine let her select the floor for the elevator's destination and the two silently waited until the signal sounded off for their departure.

Shuffling her purse and the tray of drinks she had in her hands, Elaine led Serena off of the elevator, heading towards Amelia's room that was at the end of the hall. Now standing before the door of choice, Serena knocked on the door and could hardly contain her excitement as she was ready to meet the person on the other side.

The blonde's eyes widened as she looked up into the face of an older looking Amy and being completely taken a back, Serena shifted her eyes to Elaine with an arched brow. Catching the look, Elaine greeted Amelia and then turned her attention upon Serena.

"This is Amy's mom Amelia Mizuno."

Serena's grin returned to her face by a ten-fold and she turned her attention upon Amelia, bowing slightly before the woman in greeting.

"Nice to meet you Ms. Mizuno, I'm Serena Tenoh."

Amelia smiled at the blonde's bubbly behavior. "Nice to meet you too Serena." She stepped away from the doorway, opening the door wider to allow her guests to enter. She led them towards the kitchen, allowing Elaine to take the food out of the bag as she went and retrieved some plates.

Elaine silently watched her friend, seeing that the woman was uncharacteristically quiet and seemed to be lost in thought. Though, the lavender haired woman wouldn't probe the woman until Serena was out of earshot and as that sudden thought came to mind, Elaine arched a brow. Who exactly was here to eat the extra set of burger and fries… was Amy or Michelle here? Unfortunately Elaine was snapped out of her thoughts as Amelia picked up the tray that consisted of Serena's food and the extra set.

"Come on Serena I want you to meet someone."

Serena cocked a brow in curiosity, following closely behind the older woman, Elaine following after them in her own curiosity. Amelia stopped before a bedroom door, giving a soft knock before entering. Upon entering the room, Serena spotted a lone figure lying on the bed under a massive amount of blankets.

"Lita, I have someone I want you to meet."

Furrowing her brows at the name, Serena looked upon the bed intently, really wanting to see who this person was. The person shifted on the bed and the thick layer of blankets was suddenly thrown back as Lita sat up, long chocolate brown hair in a tussled mess, bleary green eyes landing upon the group of three looking upon her. She attempted to rub the sleep from her eyes and she settled her gaze upon the small blonde that was gaping at her.

Her brows shooting up to her bangs, Lita cocked her head to the side. "Serena?"

Author: ^_^ that's all for now! Please review and tell me what you think!


	14. B1: Chapter 13

Author: Thanks so much for the reviews!!!!!! I know it's been awhile since I last updated…sooooooo sorry! I just really haven't felt like writing lately X_X I actually had this chapter plotted out weeks ago and just couldn't find the will power to actually write it all out. Hopefully I'll get the next one out soon since I do have it completely plotted out. Oh and Ryoko, haven't forgotten about your request ^_^ I'l l eventually get to making your diagram soon enough! So hope you enjoy the chapter!

Disclaimer: Don't own Sm

"Serena?" questioned Lita, sitting up in the bed, her green eyes widening in shock when she realized that it was truly Serena standing before her.

Serena took a step towards Lita, her own eyes wide with shock. "Lita? Wow I thought I would never see you again!"

Amelia cocked her head to the side completely flabbergasted; she snapped her head towards Elaine who shrugged her shoulders as she didn't know what the hell was going on. Turning her head back towards the scene at hand, Amelia decided that she wanted some answers.

"How do you two know each other?"

The two girls turned to Amelia and Serena grinned. "She's my best friend. We grew up together in Yokohoma."

Elaine narrowed her eyes upon the name of the town…now where had she heard of it before? As the lavender haired woman was lost in her thoughts, Amelia's eyes slightly widened. "You're that Serena!?" she exclaimed before her voice lowered slightly. "I knew I heard of you guys before the hospital…"

"The hospital?" questioned Serena, brows furrowed in confusion.

The blue haired doctor shook her head to clear her wandering thoughts, suddenly flashing Lita and Serena a small smile as she placed their tray of food on a side table. She quickly decided to change the subject and turned towards the girls.

"I see that you girls have a lot to talk about. Here's your food and Elaine and I will be in the living room if you need anything."

Turning quickly before Serena could interrogate her, Amelia briskly made her way out of the room and ushered a very confused Elaine out of the bedroom, silently closing the door behind them and heading towards the living room like she intended.

Serena quirked a brow at the woman's odd behavior, than slowly turned to Lita, her grin creeping upon her face. Without warning, she lunged herself upon the bed and engulfed Lita into a tight hug, causing the poor girl to hiss sharply in pain. Pulling back from her tight hold on the brunette, Serena looked upon her friend with concern as the girl gripped her shoulder tightly.

"What's wrong Lita?" asked Serena, staring intently at her friend as Lita pulled down the collar of her shirt revealing heavy bandages. Serena sucked in her breath in with a sharp gasp, looking up into Lita's pain filled eyes.

"What happened?!"

Lita clenched her jaw, staring at the blonde intently. "I can ask you the same thing." She muttered, referring to Serena's bandaged forehead and black and blue bruised neck.

Serena narrowed her eyes. "I asked you first."

Lita's eyes suddenly filled with tears, her bottom lip beginning to quiver. She unexpectedly lunged forward, burying her face into Serena's chest, her body wracked with sobs. Serena gently wrapped her arms around Lita as she began to feel the brunette's tears soak through her shirt.

"Please tell me what happened."

Lita hiccupped, gripping upon Serena's shirt more tightly. "It was bad Sere…" She burrowed her face more deeply into Serena's chest, trying to block out the vivid images of her family's deaths. "There was blood everywhere…"

Serena could feel her heart begin to speed its pace even though she had no idea what her friend was talking about. She knew she wasn't going to like what she was going to hear next but she couldn't help but ask.

"Whose blood?"

Lita took a deep shaky breath. "Me, Aiden and Daddy were going to surprise Mom for her birthday yesterday; Dad called out of work, I didn't go to school and Aiden didn't go to daycare. Mom thought we did and instead we left to get her a gift and went back home…Daddy was going to stay home with Caitlyn and Me, Aiden and Mommy were going to go out and spend the whole day together. When we got home, Dad told me and Aiden to stay in the kitchen while he went and got Mom. Next thing I know he comes in the kitchen all freaked out and yells at us to go in the car. Aiden started to cry so I pulled him outside…"

Serena tightened her hold on Lita when the girl got choked up in the middle of her story. She couldn't help that her own eyes were welling with tears, never seeing Lita in such a traumatic state. As much as she feared for her friend to continue, she just had to know what had happened. The brunette took a moment to gather her thoughts as this was the hardest part to talk about.

"When…when I brought Aiden outside I heard a loud bang and it scared me really bad. Aiden jumped out of my arms and ran back to the house…then there was another bang. I ran to the door…but I got really scared all of a sudden…like something was telling me to run away, but I didn't. I had to see if Aiden was okay and I opened the front door and blood was suddenly all over me and I saw Daddy fall to the floor."

Lita trembled at the memory as her thoughts turned onto her kid brother and mother. "Then I saw Aiden…he was on the floor covered in blood…then I saw Mom. She was holding Daddy's gun and she had this…this crazy look in her eyes. All I could do was run and when I went to jump the fence in the front yard, she shot me…she actually tried to shoot me! But that didn't stop me, I kept on running…and then Mom shot herself…"

Lita broke down into deep sobs and all Serena could do was to try and console her friend the best she could. She couldn't believe her ears; she knew the Kino's all her life, she and Lita had been best friends since they were in diapers. The two kept a close relationship even when their parents had a falling out a little over three years ago.

The silence was held momentarily until Lita scrubbed the tears from her eyes and she sighed heavily. "Where have you been…did your Dad hurt you and Amara again?"

"Yeah…remember how I told you that Daddy is never home on the weekends?" at Lita's nod, Serena continued. "Well that last Friday at school he was there…"Serena furrowed her brows at the memory. "He was waiting on us. My teacher called him about me sleeping in class and missing homework so he was really mad. When he saw Amara's black eye he went crazy."

"Black eye?" questioned the brunette as she pulled away from Serena's embrace and looked at her friend curiously.

Serena nodded. "Yea, Seiya punched Amara in the face during recess. "

"I can't stand Seiya!" remarked Lita.

"I know, me either. Anyway…everything was happening so fast and Daddy had been taking that stuff." She tapped her chin in memory. "That stuff we watched him burning on a spoon that one time and it makes him go really really crazy. Well it looked like he was taking a lot of it because he never acted this badly before…Me and Amara had to run away." The blonde decided she didn't want to tell her friend about the major details of that day, not wanting to reminisce over what her father had done to Amara and what she herself had to do make him stop.

"It's about time! He shouldn't be hitting you like that." Lita looked down at her comforter with a small frown. "I thought he hurt you like he did your Mom when you didn't come back to school. I thought I would never see you again." A small smile lightened her solemn features. "I'm glad I was wrong."

Serena returned the smile as she continued on with the story. "We've been living at an orphanage for a while and me and Amara are living with a new family for about a week. That lady with the purple hair is my Forster Mom Elaine and her husband's name is Ken, they're really nice." she smiled softly as she thought of them and then snapped back to the story at hand. "Oh and my Dad didn't do this to my forehead or my neck. I got into a fight at school yesterday."Lita's jaw dropped at finding out where her friend had been for nearly 3 months, but what shocked her most was that the normally passive blonde had been in a fight.

"Fight…" Lita's shocked expression slowly melted away and she suddenly smirked. "You tried to head butt this kid didn't you."

Serena eyed Lita. "What makes you think that?"

"Because you nearly cracked your head open the last time you did it and it looks like you did just that."

Serena stuck out her tongue. "I only got stitches!"

Lita giggled. "So what's her name?"

"**His** name is Diamond and he's a jerk!"

"You had a fight with a boy!?" exclaimed Lita incredulously.

"Yep and I really would have messed him up if the teacher didn't stop me."

Lita frowned, already wanting to get a hold of this boy that's causing her best friend problems. "Well I'm supposed to start school Monday; he won't be bothering you anymore."

Serena suddenly grinned. "Really!? I go back Monday too! You might share the same class with me!"

"You really think so?"

"I hope so!"

Lita smiled at the thought before she suddenly cocked her head to the side. "Why aren't you wearing your Odangos?"

Serena arched a brow at the unexpected question. "I don't know…"

"But you wear them every day!"

"Fine fine! I'll put my odangos in since you're making big deal out of it." Replied Serena with a smile as she took off her hat and began to unbraid her pigtails. "You have bobby pins?"

"Yep!" chirped Lita as she climbed out of the bed and began heading towards the bathroom.

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As Amelia lead Elaine into the living room, the lavender haired woman was tired of being quiet and wanted to know what was going on. Grabbing a hold of her friend by the arm, she turned the woman towards her questioningly.

"What's going on? Who is that?"

Amelia sighed heavily, running a hand through her disheveled locks. "Her name is Lita Kino, I had to take custody of her yesterday."

Elaine arched a brow slightly; that last name sounded really familiar, but she just couldn't place where she had heard it. "Why did you need to take custody…where are her parents?"

Amelia sighed once again, making her way into the living room and flopping back on a sofa, Elaine taking a seat beside her. "Her mother was heavily intoxicated on alcohol and prescription drugs and killed Lita's father, two younger siblings and then herself."

Elaine's eyes widened as big as saucers. "Holy shit! That's her…the survivor from Yokohoma?!"

At Amelia's solemn nod, Elaine leaned back heavily in her seat. "Oh my God!"

"I know." murmured Amelia. "I really don't know how to handle this…I don't know how to approach Lita with this. She hasn't spoken a word since I left the hospital. I'm in so much shock; her mother and I were so close…I would have never expected this!" She buried her face into the palms of her hands, shaking her head slightly. "I think I need a drink."

Elaine frowned, turning to her friend. "The last thing you need is a drink…we need to go out."

Amelia raised her head slightly cocking a brow. "What did you have in mind?"

"Well I passed by the Hiwaka shrine earlier and they have a sign up saying they are having a sale on some good luck charm bracelets. So I was thinking we head out there when the rest of the girls get out of school."

Amelia nodded with a smile. "That sounds like a good idea."

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Diamond twiddled his thumbs nervously as he sat beside his Dad as they were heading home. They had just left the school after their little meeting with the principal. His punishment for the fight was suspension, so he was not allowed to return to school till Monday. His father wasn't pleased at all to say the least and Diamond could see the man's hands clenching the steering wheel in a death like grip.

He sat quietly until his father pulled into the driveway of their home and as soon as Dom turned off the ignition, Diamond was out of the car and heading inside the house as fast as he could. The boy quickly made his way into his parents' bedroom and paused in his steps as he spotted his mother lying on the bed. Quietly making his way to the bed, he climbed upon it, causing his mother to slowly open her eyes and a small smile to grace her face.

"So how did it go?" she questioned softly.

Diamond sat beside his mother, laying his head against her side. "I'm out of school until Monday."

His mother shook her head in disapproval. "That's not good."

"I know…I'm sorry." He whispered and then suddenly looked up at his mother. "Are you feeling better?"

"Much better." She whispered as she ran her fingers through her son's locks. "Though, I would feel even more better if you would do something for me."

Diamond's head shot up, wide eyes staring curiously at his mother. "What's that?"

"When your brother and sister get out of school, I would like for the three of you to go to the shrine and pick me out a good luck charm bracelet."

"Okay and I'll make sure you get the best looking one!" exclaimed the 7 year old, with a triumphant smile upon his face. His mother smiled warmly with a soft nod of the head.

"I know you will."

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Darien and Andrew came jogging up to Amara and Michelle, spotting them outside the school building waiting for their ride.

"Hey you guys, Darien and Melvin are supposed to go to my Grandpa's arcade later on. You think you can come?" asked Andrew.

Amara scratched the back of her head in thought. "The arcade across the street from the flower shop?"

Andrew nodded and a grin formed upon Amara's face. " Me and Serena were there Saturday. I would have to ask but I might be able too."

Andrew turned towards Michelle who was nodding her head in agreement. "Alright cool! Hope you can come." He replied as both he and Darien headed off when the boy seen his father's police vehicle pull up in front of them. Amara furrowed her brows as she eyed Andrew's father and could have sworn she had seen him before and if her suspicions were correct, than that was Officer Furuhata in that car. She snapped out of her thoughts when she heard a horn beeping and she turned towards her foster mother's car that pulled up behind A.J's.

Amara turned towards Michelle, noticing that Amy was now standing beside her sister. Clearing her throat, she began to speak. "There's my ride, maybe I'll see you at the arcade." At Michelle's nod, Amara quickly headed off, climbing into the front seat of Elaine's car. Turning in the passenger seat to place her book bag in the back seat, her eyes widen in surprise.

"Lita? What are you doing here?" questioned Amara as she jumped out of the front seat, closing the door behind her and making her way into the back seat. Getting into the backseat, she sat beside Lita as Serena sat on the brunette's other side. The short haired blonde furrowed her brows, eyeing Lita's arm that was lying in a sling.

"You get into another fight?" she questioned, a boyish smirk coming across her face. From the corner of her eye she saw her younger sister waving her arms. Shifting her eyes to the petite blonde, she spotted Serena pointing to her arm as if it were a sling and then shake her head as if saying no. Shifting her eyes quickly to Lita, she saw the brunette had lowered her head and began to rub her arm with her free hand. Catching on quickly, Amara turned her eyes back onto her sister just as she mouthed out '_I'll tell you later_.'

With a slight nod, Amara decided to draw Lita's attention away from the terrible thoughts clouding her mind. "So did you hear about Serena's fight?"

A small smirk crept upon Lita's once gloomy face as her green eyes lit up with amusement. "Oh, the head butt gone wrong story?" Amara giggled as Serena crossed her arms over her chest defensively and huffed.

"Hey! I whooped his butt and I broke his face!"

"And his face broke your head!" shot back Lita as she too fell out into a fit of giggles at the incredulous look upon Serena's face.

"You're so mean!" whined Serena, turning away from her giggling friend and sister, trying to hide her own giggles as well. Elaine smiled at them through the review mirror as she watched the girls. Turning her attention back onto the road ahead of her, she pulled out of the school and began heading towards the shrine.

-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-

Michelle furrowed her brows as she looked outside the window to see that they were pulling up in front of a shrine instead of their complex. She looked towards Amy who was busy looking at a science book in the back seat and for the first time realized that Lita wasn't in the car. Slowly turning back towards the front, Michelle eyed her mother from the corner of her eye. She was about to ask her mother where Lita was when she seen Amara and Lita getting out of the car beside them.

Totally forgetting about questioning anything, a grin came upon her face as she excitedly tore off her seat belt and began to climb out of the car. She could hear her sister doing the same thing as the dark blue haired girl whisper out, Serena!

Jumping out of the car, Michelle ran around Elaine's car and was at Amara's side in a split second, just as Ami did the same to Serena and Lita. Amelia met up at Elaine's side as she shook her head, watching the girls interacting with each other.

"It seems like they're excited." Elaine nodded in agreement as she began to follow the girls up the many steps of the shrine.

-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-

Serena stared down at her new bracelet in awe as it was a shiny silver with dangling crescent moon and on star charms. A sudden tapping drew her attention away from her prized possession and she looked up into a window, spotting a raven perched up in the window sill. The bird pecked its beak upon the glass once again and before Serena knew it, she was heading out of the building and around to where the bird would be. Once she spotted the bird and began nearing it, the bird flew up in the air and began flying off.

"Hey wait up!" called Serena as she began following after the bird. Her sprint turned into slow jog as she spotted the raven circling an area before it dropped down into the tall grass. Quickly hurrying to the spot, Serena suddenly gasped as she spotted another raven lying on the ground, trying to flap its injured wing.

"Oh! You're hurt!" Serena dropped down to her knees, scooping the bird up in her hands and holding it closely to her chest. The other bird made its way to Serena and perched itself on the blonde's shoulder before squawking and taking flight once more as Serena made a mad dash back towards the shrine.

Taking the steps two at a time, the blonde speed demon was at the top in no time and bolted into the shrine, running down one of the many hallways trying to find a bathroom. In her hasty retreat to find her destination, the blonde didn't see the something or rather someone she was heading towards until it was too late!

_**WHAM!**_

Serena fell flat on her bottom with a grunt of pain as she held the bird protectively in her arms. Slowly climbing to her feet and rubbing at her now very sore backside, Serena looked up into raging amethyst eyes.

Rei climbed to her feet trembling with pent up anger. "Watch where you're going you…you…you stupid meatball head!"

Author: ^_^ well I'm going to leave it right there! Hehe hope you enjoyed and please review!


	15. B1: Chapter 14

Author: Thanks for the reviews you guys! I know it's been a loooong time since my last update, so I made this chapter a bit longer than usual to make up for it ^_^ Hope you enjoy!

Disclaimer: Don't own Sm

Serena frowned deeply at the name she was just called and slowly climbed to her feet. "It was an accident!"

Rei's glare intensified, balling her hands up into tight fists. "You shouldn't be running in here!"

"Look you banshee! I don't have time for this!"

"BANSHEE!?!" screeched Rei incredulously.

"Yes banshee, now move! I have to help this bird."

At the mentioning of a bird, Rei for the first time realized that the blonde was holding something within her arms. Gasping in shock, she took a small step towards Serena, eyeing the raven closely.

"Oh my gosh! Phobos!"

"Phobos?" questioned Serena as Rei gathered the bird frantically from her arms.

Rei nodded. "He's my friend." She shifted her eyes towards Phobos as the raven squawked pitifully up at her. "Daddy did hurt you." She whispered, scrutinizing the bird's injured wing.

"Can you help him?"

Rei turned towards Serena with a small shake of the head. "I can't but my Grandpa probably can."

"Well we need to find him!" exclaimed Serena. Rei nodded in agreement and led the way to where she had last seen her grandfather. The raven haired girl suddenly cocked her head towards the blonde in curiosity.

"Did you see another raven?"

"Yeah, he led me to this one."

"So Deimos is okay?"

"I guess; he was flying around outside the shrine."

Rei smiled in relief, turning her attention back onto Phobos and began to lightly pet the raven as he snuggled himself into her chest. Within a matter of seconds, they found Rei's grandfather staring rather lecherously at a group of high school girls in short skirts as they were swooning over some bracelets.

"Grandpa?"

The old man snapped out of his trance and turned upon his granddaughter with a silly grin. "Yes Rei?"

Rei chewed on her bottom lip, looking down at Phobos before returning her gaze back on the Priest before her. "I need your help with something."

Arching a brow, Grandpa Hino made his way over to Rei, taking notice to Serena's presence as well. "What's wrong?"

Rei showed him the raven's mangled wing. "He's hurt."

"Oh my!" the Priest began to escort the two girls back into the hallway. "Come along, let's get that wing fixed."

-\-\-\-\-\-\-

Amara sighed heavily as she watched Michelle gushing over her new bracelet she had just gotten. The blonde really couldn't understand why the girl was so excited over a piece of jewelry, but that was yet another thing she didn't quite understand about "girly girls" like her sister and her mother.

Speaking of her sister, she frowned slightly as her eyes slowly scanned the crowd of people who surrounded the small gift shop of the shrine. Her frown deepened as she didn't spot her sister within the room and she pushed herself off the wall she had been leaning against, just as Michelle met at her side.

"Where are you going?" questioned Michelle, her eyes still locked upon her silver bracelet, with a turquoise gem and dolphin charms dangling from it.

"Have you seen Serena?" asked Amara.

Michelle shook her head, finally looking upon the tomboy. "Not since she got her bracelet a little while ago."

Amara buried her hands into the pockets of her slacks and began heading towards the exit of the gift shop. "Well I'm going to go and look for her."

"I'll come with you."

Amara nodded and the two headed out together, silently going down the halls of the shrine. Soon enough they stopped at a door at the end of the hall, opening it, the duo was lead outside on the back side of the shrine. Amara spotted a boy dressed in robes sweeping off the back porch and she began to approach him.

"Hey, have you seen a girl with blonde hair up in odangos?"

The boy jumped a bit startled and whirled around, his eyes widening and his jaw dropping. Amara's expression mirrored his before a grin suddenly fell upon her face.

"CHAD!"

Chad dropped his broom, completely forgetting about his task and made his way over to his friend. "Amara! Is that really you?"

"Of course it is!" she smirked, slugging him hard in the arm.

Chad winced, rubbing at is wounded arm. "Yeah that's you alright." he muttered.

Amara's smirk deepened, eyeing the boy's robes. "So this is where they sent you, huh? When did you get out of the orphanage?"

Chad rolled his eyes at the blonde's smug look. "It's not so bad! I got out today; the Priest of this shrine took me in. He's a weird old man." He tilted his head to the side in curiosity. "What about you? How's the new family and is Serena here?"

"The Tsukino's are nice…I may go as far as saying that I like them. Serena is here, I'm actually looking for her. I don't know where she went."

*_cough*_

Both Amara and Chad turned towards Michelle, who stood a little ways behind Amara, arms crossed over her chest, foot tapping impatiently on the floor and the most annoyed look upon her face. Amara smiled sheepishly, not believing she had forgotten about her friend, so to redeem herself, she gave an introduction.

"Chad, I'd like you to meet my friend Michelle."

Chad smiled, giving a small nod. "Nice to meet you."

Michelle returned the gesture and Chad once again drew his attention towards Amara. "So, you said you can't find Serena, I can help you look for her."

"That would be great." replied the blonde as the three of them left the porch to find the missing blonde.

-\-\-\-\-\-\-

Diamond sat in the grass on a hill on the Hikawka Shrine's property that looked down upon the entryway of the complex. His attention was drawn to the bracelet he had dangling in front of him that he and his siblings had picked out for their mother. With a toothy grin, he placed the necklace back inside its box and slipped it delicately into his pocket.

He suddenly craned his neck to look behind him as he heard his sister Beryl shriek in terror. Their little brother Sapphire held an earthworm in his hand and was holding it up to Berly's rapidly paling face. Diamond shook his head, climbing to his feet and headed over towards the two. Drawing his hand back, Diamond slapped the worm out of his brother's hand rather hard, causing the worm to fly out of the boy's hand and land some meters away in the grass.

Sapphire snapped his head towards his brother, violet eyes burning with anger. "What did you do that for!?" he yelled, shoving his brother in the chest with both hands.

Diamond stumbled back a few steps, not expecting the shove. Frowning deeply at his brother's actions, he stepped forward and shoved his brother back, causing the boy fall to the ground. Sapphire raised himself up on his elbows, glaring up at his older brother with tears in his eyes.

"You are such a jerk!" he shouted, before climbing to feet and running off.

Beryl turned towards Diamond with a frown of her own and pushed him. "You didn't have to shove him like that Dee!"

"What are you shoving me for? I was helping you out!" snapped the boy, turning his back towards his older sister as she began to head off to find Sapphire. Grumbling underneath his breath, Diamond was ready to take a seat in the grass when he spotted long blonde hair held up in odangos. With a devious smirk coming across his face, they boy quickly climbed down the hill.

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Both Serena and Rei found a spot in the yard of the shrine, the young miko holding on to Phobos as she eyed the bird's newly bandaged wing. Serena leaned in towards the pair, lightly running a hand across Phobos soft black feathers, causing the bird to squawk at the attention he was receiving.

"You think he's going to be alright?"

Rei nodded. "Of course he will, besides Grandpa said that he should be flying again in about a week."

Deimos took the attention of both girls as he swooped down, perching himself upon Serena's shoulder and nuzzled his head against the blonde's cheek. Serena giggled, petting the bird lightly as Rei shared the girl's grin.

"There you are Deimos!" exclaimed Rei, causing Deimos to squawk in response. Serena gave the raven a few more long strokes before turning her attention upon Rei once more.

"You know, I didn't catch your name earlier."

Rei smiled. "My name's Rei. What's yours?"

Serena grinned, "My name is…"

"Meatball head." interrupted a voice. Serena growled lowly under her breath, clenching her hands on either side of her as she recognized the voice. Rei furrowed her brows with a small frown as she shifted her eyes upon the silver haired boy that interrupted their conversation. Turning back to Serena, the raven haired girl could see that this boy's presence was not welcome by the look of anger upon the blonde's face. Rei's eyes narrowed, she really didn't like that look upon Serena's face, nope; not one bit!

Serena turned towards the intruder. "What are you doing here Diamond?" she growled out, her eyes narrowing dangerously close.

"That's none of your business." mocked the boy, his devious grin deepening at the blonde's growing anger.

"Then what do you want?"

A dark glint flashed in the boy's violet eyes. "We didn't finish what we started."

"What you started!" snarled Serena, jumping to her feet. At the movement, Deimos squawked and flew off of the blonde's shoulder and settled himself upon Rei's. Rei stared upon the bickering duo, confused by what the boy was insinuating, but she could tell by their body languages that something unpleasant was about to occur.

"It doesn't matter who started it! All I know is that you're going to pay for what you did to my face!" exclaimed Diamond, taking a menacing step forward.

Serena clenched her hand into a tight fist, taking a step of her own towards the boy. "Well I would say that I will black your eye, but it looks like I blacked the both of them." The comment struck the nerve Serena was hoping to strike and Diamond let off a growl of outrage and began to run forward with a fist held high.

Serena smirked, getting prepared for the oncoming attack, though the blow never came as Diamond was suddenly thrown off balance and came crashing down at the blonde's feet. Arching a brow in confusion as to what had happened; the blonde raised her head to see her sister standing a few meters away with a satisfied smirk upon her face.

Diamond rolled over, looking at his scrapped up hands and turned heated eyes towards the short haired blonde that was now laughing at him. Climbing to his feet, he let off an enraged cry as he attempted to bull rush the blonde. Seeing the attack coming, Amara side stepped the boy and pushed him hard as he went flying passed her. The unexpected momentums caused Diamond to once again loose control of his footing and go rolling into the ground, scarping his hands and arms against small rocks.

Rolling onto his back with a grunt of frustration, Diamond didn't get a chance to sit up as he felt a weight bearing down on his chest. Gasping for air, he stared into up into angry emerald green eyes that bared down at him, causing a slight shiver of fear to course its way through him.

Amara glared down upon Diamond as she sat nonchalantly upon his chest, her knees pinning down his arms. She leaned forward, smirking as he gasped for air, bringing her face a mere few inches from his face.

"I've told your sister this once and now I'm telling you…leave my sister alone!"

"Diamond!" Both Diamond and Amara turned towards the shrine to see and older man sporting a worn FBI sweatshirt. Diamond favored the man and Dom once again called out his son's name with a hint of aggravation in his voice.

Amara turned her attention back onto Diamond. "Looks like your Dad's calling you, better go before he gets mad." Replied the blonde with a small smirk as she stood to her feet and took several steps away from the boy. Diamond climbed to his feet, making sure to glare at both Serena and Amara before running off towards his father. Amara kept her eyes upon the boy until he and his father disappeared from her sight. She then shifted her gaze upon Serena, silently scanning the girl over for any injuries.

"Did he hurt you?"

Serena shook her head. "No he didn't, he was about to hit me when you pushed him." The blonde cocked her head to the side slightly, "Where did you come from anyways, I thought you was in the gift shop with Michelle."

"Well when I didn't see you in the gift shop anymore, Michelle and I went to go look for you."

At this, Serena arched a brow. "Where is Michelle?"

In that moment, the aqua haired girl could be seen jogging up to them, her face flushed and sweaty. "Geeze Amara! Why did you run off like that?! You could have…" She suddenly paused in her rant when she spotted Serena and a small smile came upon her face. "Oh, she found you."

"Man you guys are fast!" exclaimed Chad as he finally caught up to the group, gasping heavily for air, leaning over at the waist with his hands resting upon his knees.

"CHAD!" squealed Serena as she made a mad dash for the boy and pounced on him, grabbing him up in a tight hug. The poor boy could only gag for breath and lightly pry the blonde's arms from around him so he could breathe functionally.

"It's good to see you too Serena…hey what happened to your forehead?"

Serena blushed, shifting her gaze towards her feet, finding it a tad bit more interesting. "Oh that…I got into a little fight."

"You what?!" shouted Chad in shock. He couldn't believe his ears, not the sweet and loving Serena!

Rei arched her brows, silently watching the scene before her. How in the world did they know Chad, hell she just met him today! Standing to her feet, Deimos took flight in the air, finding a nearby tree to rest in, causing the rest of the group to finally take notice to the girl. The young miko fidgeted not liking all eyes on her and Serena grinned, seeing the perfect opportunity to keep the attention off of herself.

"Oh guys, I want you to meet Rei!" Both Michelle and Amara greeted her and Rei kept her eyes upon Phobos as a light blush tinted her cheeks. Serena than turned to her sister, realizing two people were missing.

"Where's Amy and Lita?"

"With my Mom." replied Michelle before furrowing her brows. "I think we need to start heading back, we have been gone for a while now." The two blondes nodded in agreement, as the group began to head back towards the shrine.

-\-\-\-\-\-\-

Elaine frowned, looking around the gift shop one again for what seemed like the millionth time and yet again received the same results. Amara, Michelle and Serena were nowhere in sight, with a frown she turned towards Amelia who held a worried expression upon her face.

"I don't see them anywhere." replied Elaine.

"There they are." replied Ami, as she spotted the trio heading towards the gift shop entrance. As the three girls entered the room, they stared up into the annoyed expressions of Elaine and Amelia.

"Where have you been!?" snapped Amelia.

Being the quick thinker that she was, Serena stepped forward and gave the explanation. "We were outside where I found this bird and it was hurt! So we went and got it some help." Replied Serena, pointing to the bird that Rei held and the two women could plainly see the freshly bandaged wing.

With a sigh of relief, Elaine nodded in approval. "Okay, well next time just tell us where you're going. You had us worried sick!" Serena smiled to herself, she didn't exactly lie, but it wasn't entirely the truth…oh well, they weren't in trouble anymore and that was all mattered.

After three apologies rung out from the girls, Amara decided she wanted to push her luck and to ask the question she was dying to have an answer to.

"Um, Elaine?"

The lavender haired woman shifted her gaze towards the short haired blonde. "Yes?"

Amara suddenly chewed on her bottom lip, not sure why she was feeling so nervous all of a sudden. "Before we left school, me and Michelle's friend Andrew invited us to the arcade we went to on Saturday…can we go?" Elaine shifted her gaze upon Amelia who was looking down into Michelle's pleading eyes. The blue haired woman sighed and gave a small shrug, turning to look up at her friend.

"I don't see why not." replied Amelia.

At the response, Elaine couldn't help but agree. "Alright you can go, let me call Ken so he can meet us there." Amara, Michelle, Serena, Amy and Lita all broke out into excited grins and then Serena turned towards Rei and Chad.

"You think you guys can go?"

Chad shrugged not really knowing the answer, causing Rei to speak up. "I'd have to ask my Grandpa, but I don't see why not."

A 1000 watt grinned formed upon the blonde's face. "Well what are you waiting for!? Go ask him!"

-\-\-\-\-\-\-

Wallace sighed heavily, taking a long drag from his cigarette. Letting the smoke blow slowly from his nose, he focused his attention on the golden retriever that ran around the yard, chasing nothing in particular. Hearing a door opening from behind him, he turned, spotting his long time friend exiting from within the house and closing the sliding glass door behind him.

The man was tall and rather skinny, with long light blue hair that hung down to his waist, long bangs hanging into his silver eyes. He had an instrument case held tightly in one hand as he held two beers in his other. He smiled, turning towards Wallace and handed the man a beer as he himself took a seat in a rocking chair beside his friend.

"Thanks Allen." Was Wallace's gruff reply before he popped the top of his drink and took a long swig.

Allen nodded, placing his drink down at his feet and laying his instrument case upon his lap. Opening it up, he revealed a flute that was neatly dismembered and placed in its rightful places within the case. He took a moment to put his beloved instrument together than placed it down on the table beside him and then scooped up his drink and much like his friend, he popped the top and took a long swig of its contents.

He leaned back in his seat, shifting his eyes upon his friend. "So how's it going Wally?"

The grungy looking man shrugged his shoulders, running his hand through his tussled blonde locks. "Same ol' bullshit."

Allen chuckled at the remark, taking another swig of his drink. "Any luck in finding the girls?"

"Nope." Wallace smirked, turning to look at his friend. "But I know who can."

At this, Allen arched a brow in curiosity. "Who?"

"Dominique."

Allen narrowed his eyes slightly. "I thought you two severed ties."

"Well I am going to have to reconnect those ties." Wallace smirk darkened and Allen frowned slightly behind his drink. In his opinion he thought that Amara and Serena were better off without Wallace, he knew the man was torturing those girls and he knew that his friend was full of shit about the whole story about Ellen dying in a car accident. Wallace wasn't the same man that he used to be and the drugs have really fucked him up over the few years he let it consume his soul. Though, none of it was any of his business and he chose to keep it that way; besides, karma is a bitch and Wallace will one day get what he deserved.

"Where's Ann?"

Allen snapped out of his thoughts, a look of confusion apparent upon his face. "What?"

Wallace snickered. "I said where is Ann?"

"Oh, she's at the grocery store."

Wallace grunted in response, pulling another long drag from his cigarette and turned his attention back onto the dog running around in the yard. Allen took this moment to place his beer on the table and gently took a hold of his flute and began to play a soft melody that came to mind.

-\-\-\-\-\-\-

Dominique sighed wearily after pulling up into the driveway of his home. He watched as his three kids tore open the car door, slamming it shut and take off towards the house, Diamond in the lead as he held his mother charm bracelet in his hand. He shook his head as the three of them began fighting to get in the front door and before he could shout at them to stop, all three of them tumbled inside.

Shaking his head once more, he climbed out of his vehicle and went into the back door of his car to retrieve the four bags that held all of their dinner. He silently made his way up to his house and upon entry he could hear the kids talking about their trip to the shrine and about the bracelet they had chose for their mother.

With the kids being distracted at the moment, he made his way into the kitchen and quickly set up the kitchen table and divided the food out. He then made a plate for his wife and himself and placed it on a tray that he would bring into his bedroom so he could eat with his wife. After cleaning up everything the phone rang and he went to answer it.

"Hello?"

"_Well…well…well…if it isn't big shot Dom."_

Dom narrowed his eyes. "Who is this?"

There was soft chuckle on the other end. _"I'm surprised you don't recognize my voice."_

Dom gripped the cordless phone becoming agitated. "Answer the fucking question or I'm hanging up!"

A chuckle once again resounded from the other end. _"I see you still have that temper. I'm a little hurt you don't know who I am Dom, does Wallace ring a bell?"_

Dom's face visibly paled as he nearly dropped the phone. "How the fuck did you get this number?"

"_I have my ways, now enough with the questions. I need you to do something for me."_

Dom began heading towards his study, knowing that this was a conversation he didn't want his kids to walk in on. "I told you that I was done helping you."

"_Have you forgotten mother fucker that I took the fall for you on all those drug charges so you wouldn't lose your job or be convicted?! You fucking owe me!"_

Dom growled, gripping the phone so tight his knuckles turned white. "Have you forgotten that I got you off free for what you did to Ellen?! I don't owe you shit!"

That chuckle that made Dom's stomach turn painfully was once again heard. _"It seems that you've forgotten who the fuck I am boy and what I am capable of…" _There was a small pause and Dom knew that Wallace was grinning on the other end. _"So how is that pretty little wife of yours, has she keeled over yet? What about those three little shits you call kids?"_

"You keep my family out of this!" snapped Dom through gritted teeth.

"_I will if you do as I say."_

"What do you want from me!?" shouted Dom, now losing his cool.

"_I want you find my daughters Serena and Amara. Oh and Dom, I don't want to hear that you can't find them either. Your wife and kids will suffer the same fate as Ellen and I will make you watch, so I advise that you don't let me down. I will keep in touch." _with that said, the phone went dead and Dom slung the phone across the room and slammed his fist down against his desk.

"That son of a bitch!"

-\-\-\-\-\-\-

As soon as the kids stepped inside the arcade they were met with the aroma of food and the loud sounds of music mixed with the catchy tunes of the arcade games. The group of kids waited impatiently for their respective parent to give them their own set of tokens and once they received what they wanted, they all went their separate ways to play the very game that their heart desired.

Serena made a mad dash towards the Sailor V game she had played the last time she was there, only to see a long line of children wanting to play the game. Frowning in disappointment, she made her way towards a two player racing game that no one currently occupied.

"Hey Meatball head!" Serena paused as she was just about to sit behind the steering wheel of the game of choice and felt her hands clenching in anger.

"I swear to God if someone else calls me that one more time I'm going to…" her voice trailed off as she turned, seeing a grinning Darien standing behind her. All traces off anger fled from her face and she made a flying tackle upon the boy.

"DARIEN!"

Darien fell out into a fit of laughter sitting up as the blonde grinned down at him as she hastily stood to her feet once again and helped Darien stand to his feet. "Long time no see."

"I know!" gushed the blonde. "What are you doing here?"

"My friend's Grandpa owns this place; I come here all the time."

"Oh! That's so cool!" The blonde's grin didn't falter as she clung onto the boy's arm and began tugging him towards Lita as she spotted the girl on a whack-a-mole game. Rei was at the brunette's side, watching the game intently.

"You have got to meet some of my friends!" All Darien could do was laugh at his friend's antics, glad to see that his buddy was just as glad to see him as he was to see her.

Author: Well, that's all you guys ^_^ don't forget to review and let me know what you think!


	16. Book 2: Prologue

Author: Wow it's been a minute! My life has been crazy but I have finally returned to update another chapter ^_^

Disclaimer: I do not own SM

Ronnie Aino sighed wearily, running a hand through his disheveled light brown hair. His sapphire blue eyes were bloodshot red as they gazed unseeingly out of the airplane's small rectangular window. He suddenly closed his eyes and shook his head with a wry smile upon his face.

"This is not happening." he grumbled darkly beneath his breath, burying his face in the palm of his hands. With a dry chuckle, he shook his head once more and leaned back heavily in his seat, half lidded eyes looking up at the TV screen ahead of him that was starting to play another movie.

Sighing heavily, he decided that he didn't care to watch the movie and left his headphones around his neck. Propping his elbow on the armrest of his seat, he placed his chin on top of his fist, his mind wandering towards the phone call that is the cause of him catching a flight to London, New England.

*~Flashback~*

_Ronnie grunted loudly as his cell phone's annoying ring tone sounded off in his ear as the phone was wedged between his head and the pillow. Sitting up quickly from the bed with a long stream of profanities spewing out of his mouth, the young man angrily grabbed a hold of his phone. He turned his eyes towards his alarm clock, seeing the large red numbers of 2:17 am, causing him to clench his teeth in aggravation._

_The phone rang again and he looked down at the caller ID seeing that it was his ex-wife's number. He furrowed his brows in confusion wondering why on Earth this woman was calling him at this hour, especially since it had been over a year since they've last spoken to each other. Deciding to push the thought behind him, he pressed the answer button and placed the phone to his ear._

"_Hello?" spoke Ronnie, frowning as no one answered; although he could clearly hear shaky breaths from the other line. His heart began to thump a bit faster within his chest as a bad feeling began to wash itself over him like a splash of cold water._

"_Hello? Is someone there?" asked Ronnie once more, hoping that someone would respond back._

"_**Daddy?" **_

_The young man furrowed his brows as he heard the small quivering voice. "Mina, is that you? What's going on?"_

"_**Daddy…please…come get me…"**_

_Ronnie shook his head in confusion, rubbing at his tired eyes. "Mina, what are you talking about? Where is your mother?" His heart clenched painfully in his chest as his daughter broke down into heart wrenching sobs and that bad feeling came back twice as hard at her plea._

"_**Please don't make me stay here!"**_

"_Mina, please calm down and t-"began Ronnie but was cut off when he heard his daughter's scream pierce through the phone. A loud crash soon followed after as a loud and angry feminine voice could be heard shouting. Ronnie gripped his cell phone tightly within his hand as he felt a fear welling up from deep within him that shook him to the core. His daughter's screams pierced the once silent surroundings of his bedroom, along with the horrifying sound of this person beating on his child's small frail body._

"_MINA!" yelled Ronnie, praying to the Gods that his daughter would come back to the phone. Though, his wish was denied as he heard another scream resound, followed by the phone going dead._

_*~End Flashback~*_

So here he was on the earliest fight to London, New England, bent on getting his daughter. Ronnie looked down at his watch, hand shaking as the memories struck him in the heart. Seeing that he had another 3 hours before the plane would land he sighed deeply. He nestled himself against his small pillow, wrapping the itchy airplane blanket around him. He closed his eyes, deciding that a little bit of sleep would do him some justice.

-\-\-\-\-\-

Stepping out of the taxi cab, Ronnie looked up at his ex-wife's condo with a hard gaze and a tightly clenched jaw. His eyes glazed over as his mind wandered back to the day his whole life had turned upside down.

_*~Flashback~*_

_Ronnie stretched his aching muscles as he stepped out of his vehicle. He had a long day at work, working on a strenuous case at the largest law firm in Tokyo, Japan. Popping his neck, he let a tired smile come across his face. Tomorrow he had the day off and he wanted to spend it with his two favorite girls; his wife and 5 year old daughter. _

_Leaning down, he grabbed a hold of his briefcase from the passenger seat of his car, closed and locked the doors and began heading towards the elevator to exit the parking garage. Stepping inside the elevator, he pressed the button to go to the floor on which his home resided and leaned back against the metal wall of the elevator._

_He rubbed at the back of his neck wearily sighing heavily, hoping that his wife Emily was feeling more like herself today being that she hasn't been the same since her twin sister Ellen's passing a few weeks ago. His once lively and energetic wife was nothing more than a depressed empty shell of her former self and kept herself locked up within their home, drinking heavily to rid herself of the pain of losing her sister…her best friend. _

_Ronnie shook the thought from his mind as the elevator 'dinged' and the door opened so he could continue onward to his destination. He walked silently down the hallway, coming to a stop at his condo's door. Digging into his pocket, he pulled out his key and opened the door and quickly stepped inside. He placed his briefcase at the door as usual and looked around his home that was coated in darkness. _

_Sighing once more, Ronnie headed towards the kitchen and went to the refrigerator. Opening the door, the light from within brightened the entire kitchen as his eyes slowly scanned the refrigerator's contents. Not finding anything appealing, he closed the fridge's door and stood erect, grimacing as his back popped. _

_Rubbing his back, Ronnie arched a brow and craned his head towards the hallway as he heard a door slowly creaking open. Becoming curious, Ronnie began to head towards the direction and a soft smile appeared upon his face as he saw his daughter step out of her bedroom, tiredly rubbing the sleep from her eyes. Making his way to his daughter, Ronnie scooped the young blonde up in his arms and held her tightly to his chest as the young girl wearily laid her head on her father's shoulder._

"_What are you doing up so late Mina?" questioned Ronnie._

_Mina yawned, twisting a lock of her hair; an act Ronnie knew indicated that she was very sleepy. "I thought I heard some noises and someone talking."_

_Ronnie arched a brow at the statement, walking down the hallway towards his daughter's room. "You must have been dreaming, Honey."_

_Mina shook her head. "No."_

"_No?" questioned Ronnie, stepping into his daughter's room and heading towards her bed._

"_I wasn't dreaming…I know what I heard." mumbled Mina, nestling into her father's warm embrace. Ronnie shook his head with a smile, knowing that his daughter could be quite stubborn and that arguing with her would lead them nowhere. _

"_Okay Mina." He replied softly, pulling back his daughter's blankets on the bed and lowered her down upon them. Once she was settled, he tucked his daughter in and kissed her forehead, running his fingers through her soft blonde hair._

_Trying to fight the urge to fall into a deep sleep, Mina looked up at her father questioningly with large blue eyes. "Is Mommy going to get better?"_

_Startled by the unexpected question, Ronnie took a seat on his daughter's small bed, continuing to run his fingers through her hair. "What are you talking about, Honey?"_

_Mina yawned and squirmed around in her bed until she was comfortable. "Mommy doesn't act like she used too since Auntie Ellen passed away."_

_Ronnie sighed, tucking a blonde lock of his daughter's hair behind her ear. "Your mother is having a hard time dealing with Ellen passing away, but give her some time and everything will be back to the way it was."_

_The small blonde let a sleepy smile come across her face, as her eyes drooped at the thought, "You promise?"_

_Ronnie grinned, ruffling the child's hair affectionately. "I promise." He stood to his feet, leaned down and kissed his daughter on the forehead as the child wrapped her arms around a white plushie in the form of a cat. Ronnie turned away, his grin falling into a small frown as his thoughts lingered onto his promise; he really wasn't sure if that was a promise he could keep. Why that feeling suddenly struck him, he did not know and that bothered him deeply._

_With a heavy sigh, Ronnie exited the room and closed his daughter's bedroom door. He began to head towards his bedroom, but paused as he heard voices coming from the direction he was heading towards. Frowning slightly and arching a brow, Ronnie passed it off as the television and once more headed down the hallway towards his room._

_Though, his frown deepened as he heard voices again and he recognized one of the voices that belonged to his wife. Yet, the other voice was clearly a woman's and Ronnie's frown turned into a deep scowl as he began to slowly walk down the dark hallway wondering who his wife was talking to and why the voice seemed so familiar._

_Stopping in front of his bedroom door, he slowly turned the knob and pushed his door open. His heart stopped in his chest as his eyes fell upon his wife who was clearly nude, lightly pulling on a lit cigarette with her lips, releasing the smoke through her nostrils, an adoring smile upon her face. She was leaning back against the headboard of their bed, its blanket resting at her waist, showing off her bare chest. Her lust filled eyes were locked on the woman that he clearly recognized as his secretary, Stacy. She was sitting on the edge of the bed, fixing her bra and soon after she placed on her white blouse. _

_Wracked with confusion, Ronnie tilted his head at the scene before him. "What the hell is going on?"_

_Stacy jumped up with a gasp, trying to straighten out her blouse and appear modest. Emily slowly turned her attention to her husband, losing her adoring smile and replaced it with a look of annoyance._

"_I thought you were coming home late." _

_Ronnie furrowed his brows upon the look and question. His eyes suddenly darkened, becoming hurt at the look his wife held, it was as if he was in the wrong for coming home. Gritting his teeth, ignoring the pain striking his heart, he spoke in a cold tone of voice._

"_It is late."_

_Stacy swallowed deeply, the room quickly filling with tension that was making it hard for her to breathe. Snatching up her jacket from the floor, she quickly placed it on and slipped on her shoes, not bothering to tie the laces._

"_I think it's about time to go." She mumbled, but the words fell to death ears as Ronnie and Emily were caught up in their moment. Quickly bending down to grab her purse, she made a quick retreat out of the bedroom and soon out of the condo._

_Ronnie swallowed deeply, gripping his hands at his sides. "What is going on?"_

_Emily smiled wickedly sweet, now pulling up the blanket from around her waist and pulled it up to cover herself. She leaned over placing her lit cigarette in a glass that was half full of water. Turning to her husband, she slightly tilted her head._

"_What does it look like?" _

_Ronnie glared, gripping his hand painfully tight into fists. "It looks like my wife was cheating on me with my secretary."_

_Emily grinned, clapping her hands together, much to Ronnie's annoyance. "Well, well, well…looks like you're smarter than I thought!"_

_Ronnie growled lowly in his throat taking a menacing step forward. "What the hell is the meaning of this!"_

_Emily shook her head. "I stand corrected…you aren't as smart as I thought." She shook her head with a smirk, tsking in a mocking manner. "Stacy and I are lovers and have been for a long time." Emily's smirk deepened at the stunned look upon her husband's face. "Stacy and I have been together for nearly two years now."_

_Ronnie blinked back his tears as the love of his life mercilessly ripped out the heart from his chest and stomped it to the ground. Emily continued, finding it frightening how happy and relieved she felt at t the moment._

"_That is the reason why I wanted her to be your secretary…" she paused, watching the confusion shroud over Ronnie's face. "A secretary's job is to make sure you are where you are supposed to be, keeping you on your toes so you won't fall behind."_

"_She would also always know where I am at all times…" whispered Ronnie, causing Emily to nod._

"_That way sneaking around is a whole lot easier to do…no slip ups." finished Emily._

_Ronnie furrowed his brows, his tears blurring his vision. "You slipped up tonight."_

"_No…"_

"_No?" questioned Ronnie._

"_I wanted to get caught…sneaking around has gotten old and I figured it was time you knew. I'm tired of pretending."_

_Ronnie took in a slow steady breath. "What are you pretending?"_

"_That I'm happy…that I still love you."_

_Ronnie stiffened staring into Emily's eyes seeing the truth in her words and he couldn't stop the tears that slowly cascaded down his cheeks._

"_You don't mean that."_

_Emily nodded, turning to look down at her hands that were gripping the blanket she held tightly to her chest. _

"_I want a divorce."_

_*~E_nd Flashback~*

With a heavy sigh, the tired man made his way to the building, quickly entering and finding the elevator. The ride was held in silence and before long he was able to step off of the elevator. He walked down the empty hallway menacingly, hands clenched tightly at his sides, his anger fueling him.

Stopping before the room numbered 503; he balled up a fist and pounded it against the hard white painted wooden door. Dropping his hand, he impatiently waited, his hands fidgeting with anticipation. Finally he saw the golden door knob slowly turning and the door creeping open. With his eyes widening and a gasp escaping him, Ronnie dropped down into a squat.

"Mina?"

Ronnie trailed a hand over his daughter's black eye and heavily bandaged chin. He had tears welling in his eyes as he eyed the girl's busted bottom lip and frighteningly thin body. The blonde haired little girl tilted her head, looking up at her father, her large dull sapphire blue eyes brightening.

"Daddy! You came!"

"Of course I did." whispered Ronnie shakily, taking his daughter's face gently in both hands. With a deep breath, he suddenly stood erect, holding his hand out for his daughter to take.

"Where is your mother?"

Mina shrugged, taking her father's hand. "I don't know. She's been gone for a while now."

"Are you by yourself?"

At this, Mina nodded. "Yes."

Ronnie clenched his jaw tightly, leading his daughter back into the condo. "Alright, I want you to pack up some clothing and things that you don't want to leave behind."

Mina paused in mid step in the middle of the living room, causing her father to do the same. She arched her brow in confusion, tilting her head slightly to the side.

"Why? Where am I going?"

Ronnie tightened his hold on his daughter's hand and began leading her towards her bedroom once more.

"I'm taking you home with me."

Mina didn't say anything else and let her father lead her towards her bedroom door. Quickly entering the room, she and her father quickly packed a bag of clothing. Ronnie picked out a t-shirt and a pair of blue jeans and made his way towards his daughter. Grabbing the hem of his daughter's nightgown, he quickly pulled it off and nearly gasped. He tightly clenched the night gown in his hands as his eyes scanned over the bruises and welts littering Mina's overly thin body. He leaned back slightly with an unreadable expression upon his face as he counted all the ribs he could see through his daughter's pale pasty flesh.

Taking a deep breath to calm his growing anger, Ronnie smiled at Mina and helped the girl get dressed, ignoring the way her clothing hung off of her sickeningly frail body. Once they were finished, Ronnie stood to his feet and picked up his daughter's suitcase filled with clothing and personal belongings.

Before making a leave, Mina quickly made her way to her bed and took a hold of a plushie that resembled a white cat, than once again grasped a hold of her father's hand and they both made their way towards the front door. Mina suddenly released her father's hand and made an excited mad dash towards the door and yanked it open.

The little girl suddenly jumped back startled. "Mommy?"

Emily frowned deeply; lifting her large black thick rimmed glasses from over her eyes and placed them upon her head. Her icy blue eyes glared down on her daughter, gritting her teeth and curling her lip up in a snarl.

Ronnie eyes slowly scanned his ex wife and couldn't help but shake his head in disappointment; she looked down right trashy. She was unnaturally thin, her white tank top and blue jean skirt hanging off her body like drapes. Her normally ravishing golden blonde hair was a tangled split end mess. Her face was caked in makeup, her cheeks and eyes sunken in. Her eyelids were swollen and eyes were bloodshot red and glossy. Just by looking at her, he could tell that she was on something.

Mina gulped, taking a small step back, running her dry tongue along her battered lips. Her small frail frame trembling in fright as she saw the look her mother gave her. Before she was able to turn and hide behind her father's much larger frame, her mother grabbed her painfully by the arm and pulled her roughly towards her, allowing Mina to smell the harsh toxic scent of liquor on her breath.

"Where the hell do you think you're going?" growled out Emily, unaware that her ex-husband was standing in the room with them. Just as Mina was about to respond, Emily came upon the child's face with a tightly clenched fist, causing Mina to crumple down to the ground from the fierce blow.

Emily reared her foot back, preparing to kick Mina in her exposed side, but suddenly found herself pressed up against the wall by the throat. She instantly began clawing at the hand that was cutting off her oxygen supply as her widened eyes stared into the rage filled eyes of her ex.

Ronnie couldn't control his anger; how dare she put her hands on their daughter! He stared into her eyes with bone chilling hatred, ignoring the blood dripping to the floor as Emily clawed at his hand and arm frantically. Swallowing deeply, he leaned in so that his nose touched hers.

"If you ever put your hands on my daughter again I will kill you." growled Ronnie, releasing his grip and watched as Emily slid down to the floor, gasping for air. He turned away from the mess of a woman and looked down upon his daughter who was cowering on the floor, curled up into a tight ball, shaking violently as she clutched her plushie to her chest.

All traces of anger washed itself from Ronnie's form and he quickly made his way to Mina, squatting down and picking the child up and cradled her in his arms gently. With his daughter pressed to his chest he made his way over to Mina's suitcase and picked it up. Without uttering a word he walked passed Emily who still sat on the floor gasping for air. He left the apartment, not bothering to close the door behind him; all that mattered was that his daughter was safely in his arms and they were going home.

-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-

Ken yawned, stretching his stiff muscles as he sat up in his bed and leaned back against the headboard. He wearily ran a hand through his tousled brown locks, leaning over to take a hold of his glasses from the bedside table and place them upon his face. Blinking sleepily, he shifted his eyes downward, spotting his wife buried deeply within their blankets and sleeping peacefully.

Ken let a warm smile grace his face as he brushed back a few lavender locks from Elaine's face, letting a snigger escape him as he spotted the trickle of drool cascading down the corner of his lover's mouth. With a deep sigh, Ken once again rested himself back against the headboard, letting his nimble fingers run through his wife's hair affectionately, his mind wandering off absentmindedly.

Elaine hasn't been feeling too well for the past couple of days and that wasn't the only thing he has noticed about her either. Despite the fact that she's been getting sick in the mornings and sometimes at night, he also noticed the decrease in her appetite and she seemed to never get enough sleep…as well, her mood swings seemed to be at an all time high! This was beginning to worry him a great deal and if this continued any longer, he was going to have to bring his concerns to Elaine.

He sighed once more, turning unseeing eyes to look up at the ceiling, another warm smile gracing his face as he thought of Amara and Serena. He couldn't believe that 6 months ago the girls had come into their lives, making each day all the more worth living for. He could honestly say that he loved those girls to death and looked at them as if they were his own flesh and blood.

Within the past 6 months he was able to get to know the girls quite well, like Amara for instance. Even though the young tomboy may appear to be cold and uncaring, she was quit the sweetheart…though Ken honestly didn't have the balls to say that to her face. Amara is very sweet and loving and loved to pull pranks as well. It had taken a while, but Amara had soon become Ken's little buddy, with her passion for racing and anything dealing with vehicles. Now, Amara didn't show any fear towards her foster father and was very comfortable with being in the same room with him alone. The two also liked to spend their weekends at the Go-Karting track, working on the cars or just riding around the track for hours racing each other.

Ken grinned as his thoughts turned onto Serena and a small chuckle escaped him; Serena is his baby! She's so energetic and filled with so much compassion and always fights for what she believes in. She's a true girly girl, but don't let that fool you; she is down to get dirty and plays rough with the boys just like her sister. She will on occasion help out Ken and Amara at the Go-Kart track, but she was more of a homebody and loved to be around Elaine, helping to cook and clean around the house.

Ken's eyes narrowed slightly as another thought struck him. He was going to have to keep his eyes on that Darien boy, Serena always seemed to go all gaga over him and he didn't like it one bit! It might just be that time to whip out the shotgun and place it by the front door!

Stiffling a yawn, Ken leaned over towards Elaine and was ready to wake her when he suddenly decided against it and climbed out of the bed; the woman could use a little extra sleep. Making a quick retreat out of his bed room, he made his way to Amara's room. Opening the door, he couldn't help but roll his eyes seeing the young blonde sleeping on the opposite end of the bed, blankets and pillows on the floor, her limbs all over the place.

Making his way to the bed, he called out Amara's name and watched as the girl rolled over on to her stomach, burying her face into a pillow.

"Five more minutes." was the mumbled reply.

"No can do kiddo…besides, I need your help."

Amara slowly raised her head, arching a brow in curiosity. "Help with what?"

"Waking up your sister…you know how she is."

Amara smirked, sitting up in her bed. Scratching the back of her head, she slid off the bed and looked up at Ken.

"So how are we going to wake her?"

Ken shrugged his shoulders and he led Amara out of the room. "I don't know yet…"

Amara grinned as they made their way to Serena's room. "I have the perfect idea."

Ken arched his brow looking down upon the child he has come to love. "What is it?"

The young blonde's grin turned into a smirk as she opened Serena's bedroom door. "You'll see."

Ken narrowed his eyes, not sure if he liked the tone of voice Amara had used. Though, the curiosity of what she had in mind was eating him alive and he wanted to see what was going to happen…it could be entertaining!

Shaking his head, Ken couldn't help the chuckle that escaped him as he spotted Serena in a tangled heap with her blanket and sheets. Stepping into the room, he watched as Amara darted across the room and jump up on her sister's bed.

Amara straddled Serena's waist and took a hold of the sleeping blonde's shoulders and began to shake the hell out of her. When Serena didn't respond. Amara let go of her sister and didn't take notice to Serena flopping heavily to the bed and much to Ken's amazement, Serena still didn't respond. Amara pinched her sister in various places and still nothing. Gritting her teeth, Amara reared her hand back and slapped Serena clean across the face.

"OOOOWWWWW!" Serena eyes shot wide open as a series of emotions flew across her face. The ending emotion was anger and like a flash, Serena's hand came across Amara's face.

"What you hit me for?" yelled Amara, pressing a hand to her throbbing cheek.

"Because you hit me first!" yelled Serena.

"I was trying to wake you up!"

"So you slap me across the face?"

"Nothing else worked!"

"You didn't try hard enough!"

"If you didn't sleep like a dead person, I wouldn't have had to slap you!"

"That's stupid!"

"You're stupid!" yelled Amara as she pushed Serena, causing the blonde to fall back on the bed. Serena growled sitting up and pushing her sister back.

Ken didn't know if he should yell at them or laugh his ass off. That whole scene was the funniest thing he had ever seen. He bit his lip to hold back his laughter and decided that it was time to separate the girls. Amara was biting the hell out of Serena's leg, while Serena had both hands in Amara's hair and was pulling on it with all her might.

Quickly separating the two, Ken pulled both girls towards the door. "I think it's time for breakfast."

Serena stifled a yawn, than placed her hand on her still throbbing cheek. Amara had really slapped her hard and she hoped that her sister's face was hurting just as bad too. Entering her classroom, Serena spotted her friends Molly and Amy talking to another girl sitting in her seat.

She stared at the unknown girl's blonde hair that was held up in a large red bow. At the bow, Serena narrowed her eyes and paused in her steps. There was only one person she knew that wore a red bow that large and that was her cousin…but how could that be possible. Her cousin was living in London with her mother so there could be no possible way that it could be her.

Becoming curious, Serena once again continued her journey, holding her hand up as she saw Diamond begin to open his mouth to pop off some smart comment.

"Not now, I'm on a mission." replied the blonde, shutting up Diamond entirely. Coming up behind the girl she was so curious about, she raised a finger and tapped her on the shoulder. The girl turned around and Serena sucked in her breath, her eyes as wide as saucers.

"Oh my God!"

Author: Well that's all for now. I hope you guys enjoyed!


	17. B2: Chapter 1

Author: Thanks so much for the reviews and I'm so excited that I'm pretty damn close to 200 reviews. Yea it's been a while, I did have a hard time writing this chapter but I've finally got my thoughts together to get it done. I've also come to realize that it's hard to write when my son has a fascination with the laptop and wants to yank and chew on it (-_-) He seems to know the right button's to press to screw up everything ^_^ but that's the joys of parenthood! Anyways I made this chapter a bit longer than usual…I wanted to get some things explained and out of the way so the plot can thicken! Well I hope you enjoy!

Disclaimer: Don't own SM

Elaine dragged her way into the hospital, making her way towards the section she worked in. She spotted Amelia heading towards her and frowned as she watched her friend's smile falter into a look of worry and concern.

Amelia stopped in front of Elaine, arching a brow and eyeing her friend's sickeningly pale face. "Are you okay?"

"Just peachy." muttered Elaine.

Amelia frowned, placing a hand on her friend's shoulder. "What's wrong?"

Elaine sighed, crossing her arms over her chest. "I've been feeling so tired lately and a little…"

Amelia furrowed her brows as she watched her friend's face turn an interesting shade of green and couldn't help but arch a brow as Elaine suddenly bolted down the hallway, pushing past doctors and nurses in the process.

Shaking her head, Amelia followed after her, stopping in front of a bathroom. She heard Elaine gagging, followed by a nauseating splashing of water. The blue haired woman knocked on the door, now really concerned about her friend.

"Are you okay?"

Elaine cracked the door open, looking as pale as a ghost. "I think I need to take a pregnancy test."

Amelia frowned slightly. "You really think you need to?"

Elaine swallowed deeply, barely nodding her head. "Yes…I have all the symptoms."

"Alright then…let's do it."

"I have one in my purse."

Amelia arched a brow once again. "You just keep those on hand?"

"No, I bought it this morning after I dropped off the girls."

"Oh…well…go do it then!"

"Don't rush me!" snapped Elaine, before closing the door. Amelia leaned against the wall waiting patiently for the results.

"Oh my fucking God!"

Amelia jumped up as the bathroom door was slung open. Elaine stepped out, the paternity test in hand.

"I'm pregnant!"

Amelia's eyes widened, snatching the test from her friend's hand. "Let me see." She looked down at it and saw two lines.

"Let's take a couple more to make sure. We can get them from the stock room." Elaine nodded, stepping out of the bathroom and followed after her friend.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-

"Mina?" questioned Serena in confusion and shock. What the hell was her cousin doing here? She's supposed to be in England…this girl must be a look alike!

Serena furrowed her brows as the girl in question own face mirrored her own; shock and confusion.

"What are you doing here?" they both questioned in unison.

"Why are you in Juuban?"

"Aren't you supposed to be in England?"

Both girls froze as the memories of why they both were living in Juuban came to mind. They both frowned, realizing that now was not the time to discuss this important matter upon looking at Amy and Molly staring at them curiously. Serena walked around their group of desks and took a seat at the desk across from Mina, eyeing the girl down.

"We will talk later."

Mina nodded, just as Lita walked up to their desks. "Mina...?" The tall brunette looked at the blonde in confusion.

"Hey Lita…" Mina arched a brow, now even more confused than before. What the hell was going on…first Serena was here and now Lita…something serious must have really happened. Lita took a seat at her desk, eyeing both Serena and Mina.

"We will talk later." replied Serena, smiling at everyone at the table. Lita nodded, replacing her frown with a smile as well.

Molly looked between Serena and Mina, noticing their striking resemblance. "Wow…if I didn't know any better…I'd say you two were twins."

Mina grinned…it had been such a long time since someone had made that comment between her and her cousin. "We're cousins."

At the statement Amy looked up from her text book, surprise evident upon her face. "Really?" The blunette suddenly cocked her head to the side, eyeing Serena's swollen cheek. " Serena what happened to your face?"

Serena nodded at Amy's first question. "Yea…our moms are twins and...Amara…"

Every girl sitting at their table shook their head knowing Serena's and Amara's shenanigans. They all wondered if Amara shared the same mark on her face.

"Wow that's so cool." replied Molly, getting back on their topic at hand, once again gaining a quizzical expression. "Are you from here? You have an accent."

Mina blushed, playing with her pencil upon her desk. "I was born in in Yokohoma, but I've been living in England for the past two years."

"Oooh, so you know English?" questioned Amy.

Mina nodded, turning to Molly as the girl asked another question. "So why are you back in Japan?"

The four girls watched as a dark shadow suddenly formed in the blonde's eyes and disappeared as quickly as it came. "I decided to live with my dad."

Before anymore questions could be asked, the teacher entered the classroom, telling the class to pull out their homework from last night.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Amelia and Elaine looked down at least 30 pregnancy tests that all had two lines, stating that Elaine was indeed pregnant. Elaine shook her head, confusion clearly written upon her face.

"I don't understand…I've been told that I can't have children…this has to be wrong."

"Yeah…but how many people have we seen that has been told that and turn around and get pregnant."

Elaine chewed on her bottom lip, not wanting the sudden excitement welling in the pit of her stomach to get the best of her. She wanted to know for sure before she had to deal with the disappointment that she knew she was going to feel soon.

"Did you check the test that you took yet?"

Amelia rolled her eyes. "You know mine is going to say negative." She replied, picking up her test and her eyes nearly bulging out of her head.

"OH MY FUCKING GOD!"

Elaine jumped not expecting the sudden outburst. " What?" The blue haired woman suddenly placed a hand upon her chest to steady her rapid heartbeat and took a deep sigh of relief.

"Oh God…I picked up one of your tests…I thought I was pregnant for a minute."

Elaine shook her head, pushing all of the tests into the trash bin. "I need to go to a gynecologist when I get off work to make sure."

"And if you are pregnant?" questioned Amelia.

"Then Ken and I have a lot to talk about."

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Serena and the girls headed outside as many kids ran past them to reach the playground. Serena turned towards Molly and Amy, a serious expression coming upon her face.

"Lita, Mina and I need to talk for a minute…do you think you two can wait for us at the slides?" Molly and Amy could feel the tension in the air and nodded, quickly heading off towards the slides. Serena turned towards her cousin and friend.

"The sandbox is clear. We can go and talk over there."

The duo nodded and followed after the blonde to their destination. Once there, each girl sat along the edge of the wooden frame of the sandbox. Serena picked up a stick and absentmindedly drew some designs in the sand before looking up at Mina.

"So what's going on…why are you back in Japan?"

Mina sighed heavily. "I didn't lie about coming back to live with my dad."

"But why did you come back?" pressed Serena.

"Mom has changed…" mumbled Mina, shaking her head.

Both Serena and Lita scooted closer to Mina and Serena wrapped an arm her cousin's shoulders. "What do you mean?"

Mina chewed on her bottom lip, tears welling in her eyes. "All she does is yell at me and is always mad. She hits me and throws things at me…and everything is always my fault. I-I don't know what I did to make her hate me so much…"

The tears fell from her eyes and she desperately tried to wipe them away. Lita and Serena had tears welling in their own eyes and they latched themselves upon Mina in a tight hug. Serena furrowed her brows not understanding why her aunt would do such a thing…her aunt was her most favorite person to be around; it seemed like all the adults were going crazy. Shaking the thoughts from her head, Serena leaned back, wiping away her own tears.

"So…do you like living with Uncle Ronnie?"

Mina sniffled, letting a smile come across her face. "Yea! He spends so much time with me and is always there when I need him, like how it used to be before I moved to London." The blonde grinned. "We talk about everything!"

Serena grinned. "Uncle Ronnie was always really cool."

Mina nodded, looking upon Lita. It had been a long time since she had seen her as well. The two of them were so close…just as close as she was with Amara and Serena. The four of them had always stuck by each other and she prayed to God that it was going to happen now too…because she needed them now more than ever.

With a smile she asked Lita curiously. "So your family moved to Juuban?"

Lita shook her head as a solemn look came upon her face. "I think my Mom went crazy." Lita shook her head, trying to shake the images from her mind's eye…she hated remembering it…all the blood…the lifeless eyes…the gunshots…she just wanted to make it all go away and pretend that it never happened. Unfortunately it didn't and it made her angry because she didn't understand why it happened in the first place.

"She killed daddy…Aiden and Caitlyn…and herself." Lita smiled bitterly, a deep sadness flooding her eyes. "She tried to kill me too, but I got away."

Mina's jaw dropped as she looked upon the tall brunette in utter disbelief. "No way…" was all the blonde could muster.

Lita nodded. "Yes way…"

Mina licked her suddenly dry lips. "So… who are you living with now?"

"I'm living with Amy's mom and sister."

Mina nodded. "You like it there?"

"Yea…it's not so bad, but…it's just not home."

Mina hugged Lita tightly. "It will get better." The blonde suddenly turned towards her cousin curiously.

"So why are you in Juuban? Did Uncle Wallace move here?"

Serena cringed upon the mentioning of her father and it didn't go unnoticed by Mina. "Amara and I aren't with him anymore."

Mina furrowed her brows in confusion. "What do you mean? You guys are living with someone else?"

Serena nodded. "We're living with the Tsukinos' now."

"But…but why?"

Serena twiddled her thumbs, staring hard at the sand around her shoes. "Mina…there are a lot of things that have been going on that I haven't told you about…"

Mina felt her heart begin to speed its pace within her chest with anticipation. She tried to push away the dreadful feeling that was twisting in the pit of her stomach as she stared upon the fidgeting blonde in front of her.

"What is it Serena?"

"Dad…"She paused, swallowing the lump that formed in her throat. Mina didn't know anything about what has been going on…how her loveable father had turned into a monster and became angry and abusive…the truth about her mother's death…God there was so much she didn't know.

"Daddy changed."

Mina arched a brow intrigued. "Changed how?"

"He-" Serena was cut off as something hit her hard against the side of her face and she fell face first into the sand box. Pushing herself up quickly with tears welling in her eyes, she spotted a dodge ball lying a few feet away from her. Mina and Lita were at the blonde's side in a heartbeat, helping her stand to her feet.

"Oh my God! Are you okay?" exclaimed Mina, eyeing the bruise forming on the side of Serena's face. She began wiping the sand off the girl's face, scanning over her quickly to make sure she wasn't seriously hurt.

Lita's eyes were narrowed as her eyes scanned the playground and a low growl escaped her as her piercing green eyes landed on the culprit, whom was current laughing their ass off.

"Diamond…"

Mina furrowed her brows upon the name and looked over at Lita and followed her heated gaze upon the laughing silver haired boy.

"Hahaha, nice catch stupid!" hollered Diamond, ignoring the heated gazes of Serena's companions.

Mina frowned, turning towards her cousin as the girl whimpered, trying to scrape the sand from out of her mouth. When the tears began to roll down the girl's cheek, Mina had snapped and before she knew it, she was stalking her way to Diamond. She shoved the boy roughly and Diamond stumbled back and fell to the ground with a grunt.

"You leave her alone!" shouted Mina.

Diamond growled and jumped to his feet. "Make me!" he yelled, charging at Mina to tackle her to the ground. Though, before he could pummel his target, Diamond suddenly hit the floor, grabbing at his face with a yell. Mina arched a brow as she spotted a dodge ball bouncing beside the boy's head.

Turning to look behind her, Mina's eyes looked upon a grinning Lita, triumphantly standing beside a giggling Serena. Mina grinned, throwing up two fingers, making a 'V' for victory.

"Nice shot Lita!"

Lita laughed. "Thanks!"

The brunette turned towards Serena, patting her on the back. "You okay?"

Serena nodded, brushing her shirt clean with her hands. "Yea, I'm good."

Lita smiled, looking over towards the slides. "We should go see Molly and Amy."

Serena nodded, "Yeah…we've been gone for a while now." Lita and Serena headed off, dragging away Mina who just could not stop laughing at Diamond rolling around the floor in pain, cradling his throbbing face.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Chad leaned against the doorway of the front entrance of the shine, dark blue eyes locked upon Rei through his shaggy bangs. The young girl was sweeping the front porch of the shrine; the task she performed every day after school and sometimes multiple times within the day on the weekends.

He eyed her stiff form as her eyes were glazed over, sweeping robotically as if she were in a trance. He hated it! Her posture…her whole demeanor; it was just so bland. She was so stiff and could probably crack a walnut with her butt cheeks. He had yet to see her smile and it drove him crazy…no one could be that miserable…could they?

"Stop staring at me!"

Chad snapped out of his thoughts and looked upon the obviously annoyed raven. "I'm not staring."

Rei felt her eye twitch as she clenched the broom's handle. "Yes you are! You are staring dead at me!"

Chad gave a small smile. "So what if I was?"

Rei growled lowly in aggravation. "Don't make me come over there and hit you with this broom."

Chad grinned, shaking his head. "Why are you so mean and angry all the time?"

Rei looked baffled at the unexpected question, than frowned deeply. "I am not mean and angry all the time! "

"Yes you are…you're always mad and yelling or you keep to yourself and don't speak to anybody. I think Grandpa Hino is scared of you." Chad lost his grin and frowned slightly. "You should loosen up and give everybody a chance…especially Darien, Amara and Serena."

"And how do you know them exactly?" Rei had been extremely curious about that since the day they all had met at the shrine and arcade.

"I met them in the Orphanage."

Rei furrowed her brows. "Why were you in the Orphanage? Where are your parents?"

Chad straightened his posture and walked over towards the railing that wrapped around the porch and seated himself upon it. "I'll tell you if you tell me why you are living with your Grandpa now."

Rei stiffened at the choice she was given. She really didn't want to talk about it, but she couldn't resist the opportunity to know more of Chad's past.

"Alright…it's a deal."

"Okay…start."

"No you go first!" exclaimed Rei.

Chad rolled his eyes, "Fine. My dad left when I was four and got remarried. My mother always said that it was my fault that my father left and that God would punish me." Chad shook his head. "She was very religious…we were always at church or doing something that had to deal with it. She used to beat me all the time and say it was punishment for my sins…that I was a bad boy."

Chad clenched his jaw, he hated those two words with a passion…he wasn't a bad boy and never was. Swallowing deeply, he continued.

"The last time she hurt me, she shoved me down into a bath tub filled with burning hot water…that's where I got these burns from. She slipped on some water, fell, and hit her head. I was able to escape and go to the next door neighbors. I was in the hospital for a few months before I was sent to the Orphanage; my mom went to prison and was stabbed to death there."

Rei was now leaning against the railing, broom clenched tightly in both hands as she took the story in. She didn't think anyone else was going through the things that she was…to have someone you love the most cause you so much pain. As bad as it may sound, it felt good to know that she wasn't alone.

"So why are you staying here now?" question Chad as he saw the raven lost in thought.

Rei shifted her amethyst eyes upon Chad. "My mom died when I was born, she is Grandpa's daughter and used to be a miko at this shrine. My dad is trying to become a politican…and he hates me. He's always mean to me and tells me that it's my fault that my mother died. He never hit me until right before I came here…"

**-/-/-/-Flash Back-/-/-/-**

_Jethro leaned against the wall as he watched his daughter getting her hair brushed back by the head maid of his estate. Rei was dressed in a pretty white dress, decorated in red flower designs down the front of her dress. _

_Jethro watched her with unseeing eyes as he was lost in his own thoughts. It was hard climbing that latter in the world of politics and he needed as many connections as he could get. He was finally able to get in business with a very powerful man and the one thing that he asked for was Rei._

_He knew it was wrong…very wrong…but he had to take the opportunity, he needed this! This would boost his political power and nothing was going to get in his way…even if his daughter got hurt in the process. Beside…he hated the little brat. She was the reason why his wife Ebony was gone…it was all her fucking fault! It pained him deep down in his soul that Rei was the spitting image of Ebony, though she had his eyes…those gorgeous amethyst eyes he was known for. _

_He looked up as he heard the head maid clear her throat and she looked upon the man with disapproval; barely contained anger burning in her eyes. Maria was practically Rei's mother and had been taking care of Rei since the day she was brought home from the hospital when she was born._

"_She is ready." she responded coolly._

"_You may leave." replied Jethro just as coolly._

_The maid gritted her teeth, than looked down upon Rei worriedly. She didn't want to leave but this was the child's father's home, the man was her boss…Rei was his daughter; Maria couldn't say or do anything to prevent this. _

_Running a hand down the side of the girl's face, eyeing her with sympathy, than finally willed herself to leave. Once Maria was gone, Jethro made his way towards Rei and squatted down at eye level with her. He let a small smile grace his face, though the kind smile didn't reach his eyes and Rei saw it clearly. _

"_Rei, I need you to help me out."_

_The raven arched a brow with curiosity. "Help you with what?"_

"_Well you know I am becoming a politician and that its hard work." He paused at he watched the girl nod her head. "I have a friend that's going to help me…but he wants to spend some time with you before he helps me."_

_Rei furrowed her brows suspiciously; her father never asked her for help, none the less spoke to her much…so why now? "Why me?"_

_Jethro's smile broadened. "Because you are special; so will you help your dad out?"_

_Rei nodded, a smile coming to her own face; this might be the chance she needed for her dad to start liking her...maybe even love her. "Okay, I'll do it."_

_Jethro grinned, standing to his feet and patting his daughter on the head. "Good." He ushered her off of the chair she sat on and escorted her towards the door. "He is down the hall, let's go."_

_Rei furrowed her brows slightly in confusion; all the rooms on this floor were bedrooms. Why would she be talking to him in a bedroom instead of downstairs in the living room? Before Rei could think anymore on the matter, her father was already opening the door to the guest bedroom. _

_Her eyes settled upon a heavy set older man with gray hair and dark eyes. The old man lecherously licked his lips as his eyes scanned Rei's young body from head to toe._

_Rei involuntarily cringed and stepped behind her father, grabbing a hold of her father's pant leg. Jethro frowned at her reaction, and peeled the girl's fingers off of his pants and pushed her forward and closer to his soon to be business associate. _

"_Rei, this is Mr. Giles."_

_Rei didn't respond as she eyed the man wearily, as the man smiled at her wickedly sweet. The small raven suddenly jumped startled, turning around quickly. Her father was nowhere in sight and the bedroom's door was closed. She gulped in fear as she heard the door being locked from the outside._

_She turned back towards the old man in the room and took a step back as she spotted the man unbuttoning his white shirt, pulling it off and throwing it on the floor. He pushed his black suspender straps off his shoulders and un-tucked his white wife beater shirt from his pants. _

_He began advancing towards her. "My, my, my…aren't you pretty."_

_Rei clenched her jaw as she backed herself up against the bedroom door, her heart beating against her chest. The old man seemed to like her reaction as he licked his lips with a dark gleam in his eyes. He planned to do so many things to this little girl…he just couldn't wait to get a taste of her dark tanned skin._

_He suddenly lunged forward to grab a hold of the trembling child, but Rei was faster and she ducked down and darted across the room, picking up the side table lamp in the process. She held it up defensively and pointed it threatening towards the man that was more than willing to cause her some harm._

_The old man let a deep chuckle escape him, amusement shining in his eyes. "What do you plan on doing with that?"_

_Rei growled lowly at his mockery. "I'm going to hit you with it!" _

_The old man grinned, beckoning the girl forward. "Come on."_

_Rei furrowed her brows in astonishment before gripping the lamp more tightly in her hands. She suddenly lunged forward, swinging the lamp at the man viciously. The old man dodged each blow and suddenly grabbed a hold of Rei's arm as she tried to strike him again. _

_He yanked her towards him, her feet momentarily leaving the floor. He grabbed her by the throat, raising her off the floor as she screamed and clawed at his large hand. He slammed her down onto the floor, causing Rei to gasp loudly as all the air left her lungs. Her mind swirled and throbbed painfully as her head had slammed against the floor as well. She clenched her jaws as a wave of nausea suddenly hit her and she whimpered pitifully to stop herself for throwing up. _

_Mr. Giles grinned in satisfaction when Rei stopped resisting and he suddenly raised the girl and tossed her onto the bed. He watched as the raven drew her knees up to her chest, and clenched her head with both hands. He unbuckled his black leather belt and unbuckled his tan dress pants. Kicking off his shoes and taking off his pants, he quickly climbed upon the bed, his large body hovering over the writhing child beneath him. _

_He placed his hand upon her shoulder and roughly rolled her onto her back and was met with a solid punch clean across the face. He was soon met with another and quickly snapped out of his daze, as he tried to grab the girl's swinging arms. _

_Rei felt the panic rush throughout her small body as the man was able to pin one of her arms down. She made the quick decision to attack him hard now, because later she may not get the opportunity. Her free hand shot out and her small fingers latched upon the hair at the back of his head. She pulled on it as hard as she could, causing the man to throw his head back with a yell. He threw his hands back and tried to grab at her offending hand, but soon screamed in pain as he felt Rei's teeth latching upon his ear. _

_His screams grew louder as the set of teeth dug in deep and Rei began to shake her head, a chunk of his ear tearing off. Mr. Giles threw himself back, grabbing at his injured ear with shaking hands, blood running down his neck and drenching his undershirt. _

_Rei spit the piece of ear from her mouth and wiped the blood from her chin with the back of her hand. She clenched her fists and glared upon the man with hatred, prepared to attack if she needed too. She be damned if she was going to let this man put his hands all over her…she would not go down without a fight!_

_The both of them turned sharply towards the door as Jethro threw it open, the wooden door smacking against the wall, nearly cracking it. The man's eyes widened in horror upon the scene before him as Mr. Giles quickly climbed off of the bed and grabbed his clothing while slipping his feet into his shoes. _

_Without looking at Rei or Jethro, he made his way towards the exit, put stopped in the doorway, back facing towards them._

"_The deal is off." _

_Hearing the conviction, Jethro clenched his hands into tight fists, seething in anger. He had just asked for one simple fucking task for the little bitch to perform and she blew it! Dark eyes turned upon the once again trembling child as she started to move herself off the bed and towards the door. He had to give the girl credit…she was far from stupid and she always knew when it was time to leave…but this time she wasn't going away…not until he was done with her._

_A pecking could be heard against the glass of the window in the room and both father and daughter turned towards the window to see a raven tapping frantically at the glass._

"_Phobos?" whispered Rei as her father advanced towards the window._

"_What the hell?" muttered Jethro as he went to the window and opened it. He wasn't expecting the raven to fly into the window and started pecking at his face viciously. The startled man stumbled back flailing his arms to stop the bird from attacking him. He finally was able to cast a strong blow onto the bird and caused it to crash down to the floor with a squawk; black silky feathers flying everywhere._

"_PHOBOS!" screamed Rei, but her attention was diverted back towards the window as she spotted another raven at the window sill. _

"_Deimos get back!" screamed Rei, but the raven didn't listen and bee-lined it for Jethro's exposed back. Jethro suddenly turned and snatched the bird up in his hand before Deimos could do him any damage. The bird squaked loudly as it flapped its wings frantically trying to escape. _

_Jethro smirked as he picked Phobos who was still flapping around on the floor. Rising up both birds at eye level, he made his way over to the window, bent on tossing them out of it._

"_No Daddy! Stop it! You're hurting them!" screamed Rei as she scrambled her way across the bed to stop her father._

_Jethro ignored her and flung the two birds out of the window and slammed it closed and locked it. He could hear Rei screaming as she tried to run to the window and before he knew it, Jethro was seeing red as he spun around with a back hand fist across the side of Rei's face. The girl was thrown back and slammed up against to bed with brutal force before she crumbled down to the floor in a broken heap. _

_Before she could react, her father was on top of her, raining down punch after punch upon her defenseless face. _

"_You fucking blew it!" yelled Jethro as he suddenly stood up and began kicking Rei upon her exposed back and ribs, ignoring the girl begging him to stop and her screams of agony. He suddenly stopped; running a hand through his sweat soaked bangs and frowned deeply as he looked down at his daughter's unmoving form. _

_He nudged her with his foot."Get up!"_

_When Rei didn't budge, the man suddenly squatted down and rolled the girl onto her back, brushing her hair from her blood stained face. Swallowing deeply, Jethro quickly checked for a pulse and sighed with relief when he found one._

"_Good…I didn't kill the brat." He stood to his feet and exited the room. He momentarily returned with a piece of paper with some string tied threw it. He made his way over to Rei, raised her head and tied the string loosely around the girl's neck. Once finished, her scooped the girl up in his arms and left the room, than out the house. He made his way towards the car and placed Rei in the back seat and he himself climbed into the front and drove off._

_He knew the perfect place to drop the girl off…he didn't want this incident to be brought out to the public…he couldn't damage his career more than the girl had already just done…it was time to drop his burden upon someone else._

_**-/-/-/-/-/End Flashback-/-/-/-/-/-**_

"Next thing I know I wake up in a bed, and I see an old man standing over me. I freaked out and started swinging on him…I had no idea who he was. I didn't calm down till he told me that he is my grandfather…that he is my mother's father." finished off Rei.

Chad frowned slightly; he had expected Rei to have been crying as she finished telling him her painful ordeal. Though, he was greeted with a face that was as hard as stone and her eyes were as cold as ice.

He shivered slightly…he hated that look more than anything.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Grandpa Hino sighed deeply as Rei finished her story. He had started to come outside to tell Chad and Rei that supper was almost ready, but he had heard Rei yelling at Chad and he couldn't help but hide in the doorway and listen curiously to what they were fussing about.

He hadn't expected to listen to the both of them converse over their past abuse. He had already been informed over what happened to Chad, but to hear what had happened to his granddaughter…his flesh and blood had simply crushed his heart. Now he knew why she had been so hostile towards him…she thought that he was another one of her father friends that wanted to hurt her.

He be damned if Jethro had anything else to do with Rei…the bastard had actually attempted to sell his own daughter to benefit himself! Than the man had the nerve to beat the shit out of his daughter because she had fought back against someone who was going to hurt her; what the fuck was going on with the world?

Grandpa Hino shook his head, looking up at the sky to see two ravens perched up in a tree close to where Rei was leaning against the porch railing. He let a small smile come across his face; those birds were his granddaughter's protectors and he was grateful for them. Now he wouldn't get so angry when they ate out of his crops in the back yard.

Placing his thoughts to the back of his mind, he called for Rei and Chad to come and eat.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Amara grinned as she looked down at the can of shaving cream in her hand, than over to her sister who was giggling.

"You think this is going to work?"

Amara nodded. "Of course it will…I saw this on tv it!"

"Okay, well let's hurry up before Elaine gets here!"

The short haired blonde nodded and they both exited their foster parents' bathroom and quickly made their way down stairs. They spotted Ken lying back on the sofa as his feet were propped up on the coffee table in front of him and was sleeping soundly.

The girl's sat on either side of him and gripped the shaving cream can more tightly in her hands. Serena pulled out a feather from her pocket that she had pulled out of her pillow case. She nodded for Amara to put the shaving cream in Ken's hand and she did so. Serena than took her feather and tickled Ken's nose and unfortunately, he used his non-shaving cream hand to swat his nose.

Pouting in disappointment, Serena motioned for Amara to put the shaving cream in the other hand. The tomboy did so and waited in anticipation as Serena leaned forward to tickle Ken's nose once more. Both girls yelped in surprise as Ken suddenly jumped up and mashed his shaving cream filled hands into both Amara's and Serena's faces.

He roared into laughter at the girls' surprised cream covered faces. "Thought you was going to get me did you?" he questioned, enjoying his victory.

Just than Elaine stepped in through the front door and arched a brow at the scene before her. She shook her head with a giggle, not at all surprised by her husband's antics with the girls. Now she wondered how the girls were going to get him back and she hoped she had the camera at hand.

Pulling off her jacket she hung it up on the coat rack beside the door and she turned her attention upon her family.

"You girls go and get cleaned up while I talk to Ken for a moment." Both girls nodded and darted up the stairs, claiming that they will soon get their revenge.

Ken chuckled turning towards his wife as he wiped his hands clean upon his dark denim jeans. "What's up honey?"

Elaine sighed and began to wring her hands together tightly. "We need to talk."

Ken frowned slightly, as he sat up in his seat and ushered for Elaine to sit down beside him. "What's going on?"

Elaine took a seat beside her husband and placed a trembling hand upon his leg that began to shake from nervousness.

"I went to the O.B.G.Y.N today."

Ken furrowed his brows in confusion. "Why?"

Elaine licked her suddenly dried lips and stared her husband hard in the eyes. "I'm pregnant."

Author: And that's all for now ^_^ hehe, I hope you enjoyed and go ahead and review…you know you want too!


	18. B2: Chapter 2

Author: Thanks for the reviews you guys!

Disclaimer: Don't own SM

Ken's eyes widened a big as saucers as he stared hard at his wife sitting beside him. Her words was playing over in his head repeatedly and confusion was burning threw his veins. He just couldn't have heard her right…the doctors had frankly stated that Elaine was unable to bare any children.

"What do you mean you're pregnant?"

Elaine eyed the confusion in her husband's eyes and drew her hand towards him, intertwining her husband's fingers with her own; tears shining in own her eyes.

"I'm pregnant…I'm 7 weeks pregnant."

Ken shook his head in denial. "No…the doctors said…"

"I know what the doctors said…" interrupted Elaine as she stared down at their laced fingers. "but I am pregnant…" Elaine felt tears rolling down her cheeks as she remembered the ultrasound, remembered seeing the tiny embryo that was now growing inside of her. "I saw it…I heard its heartbeat…it was so fast!"

The lavender haired woman shifted her gaze upon her husband as he tightened his grip upon her hand, eyes blank as he was lost in thought. Ken suddenly jumped up, pulling his wife up into his arms and began to spin her around the room in pure joy and excitement.

"Oh my God, we're really going to have a baby! This is great!"

The lavender haired woman giggled, leaning against her husband dizzily as he finally stopped spinning her around. "I think it's time to tell the girls about our plans for the future."

Ken leaned back from his wife and arched his brows questioningly. "You sure?"

Elaine nodded enthusiastically. "Yes…I think it's time they knew."

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Amara and Serena ran up the stairs and quickly headed towards their bathroom. Once in there, Amara turned on the faucet as Serena grabbed two towels out of their linen closet. Serena leaned against the wall as she watched Amara clean her face and hands.

"Why do you think Elaine didn't pick us up from school today?"

Amara leaned over and took a hold of one of the towels her sister held and proceeded to dry her face and hands.

"I don't know…Ken said she had to go somewhere."

"I know." Serena furrowed her brows. "But where do you think she went?"

Amara tossed her towel into the dirty clothes bin and shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know; does it really matter?"

Serena shrugged as she handed her towel to Amara and made her way to the still running sink. "I guess it doesn't…but it's just weird…she always picks us up." She leaned forward, placing her hands underneath the warms water and watched as the shaving cream residue swirled its way down the drain.

Amara rolled her eyes and crossed her arms over her chest. "It's not weird…she just had something to do; there's nothing more to it."

Serena leaned back after cleaning her face and grabbed the towel her sister handed to her and dried her face and hands.

"If you say so…" Serena tossed her towel and turned for the door as Amara raised her brow questioningly.

"What is that suppose to mean?"

"Think what you want and I'll think what I want." replied Serena as she looked over shoulder at her sister with a small smile.

Amara once again shrugged her shoulders and followed after the smaller blonde when she exited the bathroom.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Ken nodded at his wife, deciding that she was right and now was the time to tell the girls their plans, just as the two little blondes came bounding down the steps and into the living room. Elaine smiled at them fondly and ushered the girls to take a seat on the sofa.

"Girls…Ken and I would like to talk to you."

Both blondes looked up at their foster parents curiously. "Talk about what?" questioned Amara as she gave a quick glance towards her sister whom was eyeing the Tsukinos a bit cautiously. Oblivious to Serena's gaze, Ken took a seat on the couch across from the girls, allowing Elaine to take the lead and the woman gladly did so.

"Girls…we have a lot to talk about."

"What do you want to talk about?" asked Amara as she felt herself tense slightly, wondering if Serena was actually right…that maybe there was more to Elaine not picking them up than she originally had thought.

Elaine smiled, taking a seat on the coffee table and faced the girls, trying hard to conceal her excited squeal. She decided that she wasn't going to stall and just be straight forward with the girls. "Today I went to the doctors…"

She paused as she looked upon her foster children as they stared intensely back at her. "I found out that I am going to have a baby!"

Elaine couldn't help but grin in excitement that she was really going to have a baby, though her grin quickly vanished as she watched the expressions on the girls' faces; it was not what she had expected. Serena looked extremely puzzled and began to nervously chew on her bottom lip. Elaine shifted her gaze upon Amara and watched the flickering of emotions upon girl's face, before it turned emotionless…cold.

"I thought you guys would be happy…" whispered Elaine in confusion…she didn't understand their expressions…she just could not understand why they weren't as happy as she and Ken. She turned her gaze towards her husband who was just as puzzled at their reaction as well.

Amara stared down at her shaking hands as she felt anger welling within her…they were going to have a baby…they weren't going to want them anymore with their own child. They were going to send them back to the Orphanage…and she didn't want to go back…she couldn't go back.

The blonde shook her head as she felt the tears welling in her eyes…she was finally happy…finally comfortable…and now it was all over!

The tomboy suddenly jumped up, causing Elaine to jump back and stare at her in surprise. Amara had her hands clenched into fists as her body trembled with such anger it left Elaine at a loss for words.

"How can we be happy?" yelled Amara, becoming angrier as she felt a tear roll down her flushed face. "You two are going to have a baby and won't want us anymore! You're going to send us back to the Orphanage!" The blonde suddenly turned and ran out of the room and was up the stairs before Elaine or Ken could utter a word.

The lavender haired woman heard Amara's bedroom door slam closed and Elaine than shifted her eyes upon Serena who was staring blankly ahead of her, lost within her own thoughts. Elaine swallowed deeply as she stood to her feet, deciding that she needed to deal with Amara first.

"I'll be right back." She replied and quickly turned and made her way towards the stairs. When Elaine hit the last step, Serena slowly turned her head and shifted her large tear filled eyes upon Ken.

"You guys are going to get rid of us?"

Ken swallowed deeply as the look just about broke his heart; he never wanted to see that look on her face ever again…she looked so…so crushed and dejected. He quickly shook his head, wanting to reassure the girl.

"No…we don't want to get rid of you guys…it's the exact opposite."

-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Elaine stepped into Amara's room and spotted the blonde lying upon her bed on her stomach, face buried into a pillow. Soft sobs could be heard as the blonde's body slightly shook from her cries. The woman sighed as she made her way across the room and took a seat upon the bed, laying her hand upon the blonde's back. She frowned as she felt the girl tensed at her touch and narrowed her eyes as the blonde refused to relax.

She began to rub the girl's back as she shook her head sadly. "Amara…you have it all wrong sweetie…we don't want to send you two back to the Orphanage, we want to keep you."

Amara tensed even more and clenched her pillow tightly. "Don't lie to me!"

Elaine frowned deeply. "Honey, I am not lying. Ken and I want you and your sister to stay with us."

Amara relaxed slightly before she turned her head towards Elaine and peaked at her through her bangs. "You want to keep us?"

Elaine nodded, brushing away Amara's hair from her face. "I guess I should have told you guys that first." murmured Elaine softly, wiping away the tears from the child's face. "Ken and I talked to Setsuna a few weeks ago wanting to know if it was possible to adopt you two."

"Adopt?" questioned Amara.

"Yes adopt; it means that Ken and I will officially be your parents…we will be your permanent guardians."

Amara nodded slowly as she listened to her foster mother. "So you will be my mom then…and Ken my dad?"

Elaine smiled with a nod of the head. "Yes…we wanted to discuss this with you and your sister and wanted to make sure that you two do want to stay with us."

Amara clenched her jaw slightly as she wondered what this truly meant; if they can adopt them, were they truly orphans? Was their father really dead?

The blonde shifted her gaze upon Elaine looking at her expectantly and she couldn't help but smile. "I want to stay."

Elaine grinned and stood from the bed and headed towards the door with a bounce in her step. "Great! Now let's go tell your sister…plus there's more we need to talk about."

Amara froze as she was halfway off the bed, and stared after her foster mother's retreating back. "There's more?"

Elaine laughed as she exited the room and yelled over her shoulder. "Yep, there's more. Come on so we can talk to your sister too."

Amara shook her head with a sigh…what else can they possibly tell them?

-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Ken had just finished explaining to Serena about the plans on adopting her and her sister, when Elaine came down the steps with Amara not too far behind. The duo took their respective seats, Amara next to Serena and Elaine next Ken.

Elaine looked upon Ken. "So, what all have you told Serena?"

"I just finished telling her about our plans to adopt the both of them."

Elaine nodded and turned towards the girls. "Okay, now that that is out of the way, we wanted to talk to you Amara."

The short haired blonde arched a brow. "Me?"

"Yes." replied Ken as a smile graced his face. "Being that you have been keeping your grades up…Elaine and I decided that you can join the go-kart racing league."

Amara was taken by surprise as her eyes widened. "I can race?"

Ken grinned. "Yes you can, tryouts will be in three weeks. So, you will need to start practicing every day after school. Do you think you can handle it; you have to keep your grades up too. We want nothing less of a B."

Amara nodded vigorously. "Yes I can do it!"

Serena pouted as she looked towards her soon to be parents. "What about me?"

Elaine smiled, turning towards the small pouting blonde. "Well I've noticed that you've been watching a lot of the gymnastic tournaments on the television…Ken and I found classes here in Juuban, so we decided to let you join...but…"

Serena leaned forward anxiously. "But?"

"You have to bring up your math grades…they're horrendous." replied Elaine.

Serena's face fell as she whined pitifully. "Then I'll never get into gymnastics! I hate math!"

"Yes you will, besides, I talked to Amy's mother and Amy will be tutoring you in math; once your math grades is up to at least a C, than we will talk about you joining."

"How about a D+?"

"Nice try, but no." replied Elaine sternly. "Now that that is all out of the way, how about you girls help me with dinner?"

Both girls nodded their heads vigorously and stood quickly and made a quick retreat to kitchen. Elaine shook her head; shifting her gaze towards her husband who was grinning, eyes upon the kitchen the girls' disappeared in.

"That went well."

"Rocky at first, but yeah…finished out great." replied Ken.

Elaine suddenly smiled, tucking a loose strand of lavender behind her ear. "We started out with no kids…then to two kids and now we are going on three kids. Do you think we can handle it?"

Ken wrapped an arm around his wife's shoulders, drawing her closer to him. "Of course we can handle it…I mean… I think we're doing a pretty damn good job raising Amara and Serena; how hard can it be raising a baby?"

The Tsukinos' suddenly jumped as they heard glass shatter upon the floor in the kitchen.

"I didn't do it!" hollered both Amara and Serena in unison.

Elaine shook her head and smiled, leaning into her husband's embrace. "You're right…this should be a piece of cake."

Ken nodded. "A piece of cake."

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Amara sighed heavily as she lay flat on her back, hands behind her head upon Serena's bed. She had finished her homework not too long ago and decided that she want to sleep in her sister's room tonight. She turned to her sister as she felt the blonde shift beside her. Serena, whom was lying upon her stomach with her arms wrapped around her pillow beneath her head, raised her head, looking upon her sister inquisitively.

"What are you thinking about?"

"Nothing."

Serena frowned, raising herself up into a sitting position, crossing her legs beneath her. "Tell me."

Amara rolled her eyes, before settling them upon the bedroom window. "I was thinking about dad."

Serena stiffened in surprise and furrowed her brows. "Why are you thinking about him?"

"Not really about him…more like what's really going on right now."

"What?" exclaimed Serena, now completely confused.

Amara shook her head with a small smile forming. "Elaine and Ken can adopt us, right?"

Serena nodded. "Yes."

Amara continued. "So that must mean that we're really orphans."

Serena slowly nodded, still not understanding where this was going. "Yeah…I guess."

"If we're orphans…that means dad must really be…dead." The tomboy turned towards her sister, watching silently as Serena chewed on her bottom lip, tears welling in her eyes.

"I killed him." She whispered brokenly, the tears now rolling down her paling cheeks.

Amara sat up quickly, pulling her sister towards her and into a tight embrace. "Don't say that!"

Serena threw herself back from her sister's arms "But it's true!"

'"It was an accident!"

The small blonde slowly shook her head as she choked on a sob. "I pulled the trigger…I shouldn't have done it…I-I shouldn't have gotten that gun."

"You were trying to protect me Serena…if you hadn't of done it…there's no telling what could have happened that day. We…we could of died that night."

Serena stiffened as those words sharply sunk in and she raised her eyes towards her sister. "I don't want to talk about this anymore."

Amara nodded, deciding that would be wise. She shifted her gaze towards her lap as she twiddled her thumbs. "So…do you really want to be adopted by the Tsukinos?"

Serena smiled, grateful for the subject change. "Yeah…I really love them."

The tomboy grinned as she nodded in agreement. "Yeah…I love them too."

"Hehe! You finally admit it!"

Amara blushed slightly with a small pout. "Shut up!"

Serena giggled, "Hmm…Serena Tsukino…I think it sounds good!"

Amara nodded. "Yeah it does. Tenoh sounds better with mine…but Amara Tsukino isn't so bad."

"No it isn't." replied Serena drawing her knees up to her chest, resting her head upon her knees, wrapping her arms around her legs.

"Do you think mom will be mad that we are going to be calling someone else mom?"

Amara frowned slightly as she thought over the question. She suddenly shook her head, shifting her green eyes upon her sister.

"No, I don't think she would be mad. Elaine isn't trying to take her place, more like…taking over where mom left off."

Serena smiled accepting the answer, her thoughts turning towards her red bow wearing cousin. "You wouldn't believe who is in my class now."

Amara arched a brow curiously. "Who?"

Serena smirked. "Mina."

The tomboy laughed, shaking her head. "No, really…who is it?"

Serena shook her head. "No really. Mina is in Juuban…she's back in Japan."

Amara tilted her head to the side. "She's in London, Serena."

"Not anymore…she's living with Uncle Ronnie now."

Amara frowned. "Why?"

"Long story short…Auntie Emily went crazy like dad and Uncle Ronnie went and got her."

"Aunt Emily…" whispered Amara in disbelief; she would have never of thought that her Aunt could turn into a monster life her father had done.

"I know." whispered Serena with a sigh. She lay back, getting comfortable on her bed. "You know…I think it's going to be fun have a little sister around."

"Yep, I wouldn't mind have a little brother to play with."

Serena frowned. "It's going to be a girl."

"A boy."

"Girl!"

Amara smirked, causing Serena's frown to deepen. "Let's bet on it."

"I'm listening."

"If the baby turns out to be a boy, you have to do my chores for a month. If you win, I'll do yours for a month."

Serena grinned, nodding her head and raising out her hand. "Let's shake on it."

Amara smirked, placing her hand within her sister's and they both shook on it, sealing the bet.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Wallace slowly dragged on his cigarette as he sat quietly in his beat up truck. He shifted his glossy green eyes over towards the clock on the dash, noting that it was three in the morning. He then turned his eyes towards the window beside him, staring up at the house of the Tsukinos.

"So this is where you little fuckers have been staying." muttered Wallace as he shook his head with a grimace on his face.

"You won't be here long…I will get you back and I will make you suffer!" he declared loudly, leaning forward and turning up the volume to his radio. He shifted his truck into gear as heavy metal guitars blared loudly within his vehicle.

"That I promise you!" with that last statement, he sped off into the night.

Author: Well that's all for now! I hope you guys enjoyed! Please review and let me know what you think!


	19. B2: Chapter 3

Author: Here's another chapter! I hope you enjoy.

Disclaimer: Don't own Sm.

Dom drummed his finger tips along the top of his desk as he stared down blankly at it, contemplating over the consequences of what he had done. He knew that he shouldn't have given Wallace the whereabouts of where his daughters have been staying for the past couple of months…but he knew Wallace; that man would make his life a living hell until he submitted to his devious deeds.

The bastard didn't know when to stop and that's why his own life is the way it is…completely fucked up.

His wife is dead…his daughters don't want nothing to do with him. The sorry sap of a man is a washed up drug addict…a very dangerous washed up drug addict at that. To think just four years ago the man was the top drug lord of Tokyo, but that had brutally came crashing down and blew up in his face…if only he hadn't become careless and listened to the warnings sooner…just maybe…his life wouldn't have crumbled to pieces.

God…wasn't karma a bitch? It was going to keep attacking Wallace until it finally put him in his place…and hopefully soon…he has hurt so many people…destroyed so many lives…

The only thing Dom wished was that karma would take its vengeance upon Wallace before the man got his grimy hands on those girls. The F.B.I. agent cringed at the thought…he really fucked up.

He shook his head, running a hand through his slightly disheveled hair with a heavy sigh, realizing that he should have told somebody about this…but he couldn't risk losing everything for the dumb decisions he had made in the past that would be exposed if he explained his situation now. Those dire mistakes will cost him his job and he will lose everything that he has worked so hard for.

He couldn't disappoint his family…

He couldn't let that happen…he had three kids and a very ill wife…he needed this job…no matter the cost…even if it meant ruining the lives of two little girls to keep his own family safe.

It was selfish…but too damn bad!

Dom shifted his glance towards the family portrait upon his desk, picking it up and glancing down at it longingly. He traced his thumb over his wife's face, noting that the picture was taken just before his wife became sick.

Karma had really kicked him in the balls too…not too long after the drug bust ordeal with Wallace, his wife Jen had a miscarriage with their fourth child a week before Saphire's 1st birthday. Jen had fallen into a deep depression over the loss and there was nothing Dom or the kids could do to bring her out of it. By the time the ordeal with Ellen's death occurred, Jen was diagnosed with Leukemia. They both had tried to hide the diagnosis from their children … but they knew that something was wrong.

Their mother was no longer lively and happy…she was becoming strikingly thin and pale…her persona dark and gloomy.

The both of them had to come clean when Jen had to start her Kemo therapy sessions and her blazing red hair started to grow thinner and was falling out in clumps when Beryl brushed it at night. Diamond and Beryl didn't take the news too well…it was what he had expected. How is a child suppose to react when they find out that their mother is deathly ill and had high chances of dying?

Not too long after the news was out, Beryl and Diamond started acting out and getting in trouble at school. Dom knew that his two older children were acting out as a way of expressing their anger towards their mother's unfortunate fate. They were confused…and angry…and just couldn't understand why something like this would happen to such a good hearted and amazing person…to their mother of all people.

So…they channel those negative emotions into hurting others…and in some sick way, hurting others blocks out their own pain and fears and makes them happy.

Dom frowned at his thoughts…that was not the way to deal with things…but things have gotten so out of hand that he was at a loss on trying to fix things…lost on how to bring his crumbling family back together again.

His thoughts than turned towards his other son Sapphire and he frowned at the thought of him. At first the news didn't bother him, but he understood that, he was only three at the time; he really didn't understand what was going on…he just knew that his mother was sad.

As he got older he didn't follow in his older siblings' footsteps…instead of acting out, he closed himself off. He rarely spoke unless spoken too…he keeps himself locked up in his room and most recently, Dom would find his son standing in the doorway of his mother's room, watching her silently as she tried to sleep away her pain. He would watch the tears well in his son's eyes every time he saw his mother struggle with swallowing the many different pills she was prescribed to help keep her illness stable.

It really unnerved Dom that he didn't know how to reach out to him…he didn't know how to comfort his own children…he knew he wasn't the only one having a hard time with Jen's fatal illness…but how was he suppose to comfort his kids when he himself couldn't deal with the whole tribulation himself.

_*sigh* _

Yeah…Karma had really done a number on him…there was nothing worse than watching the one you love with all your heart suffer so terribly; mentally, emotionally and physically. It was horrible to see the pain and confusion in your children's' eyes and was unable to do anything about it.

Yes…karma was really a bitch! A very evil bitch!

Dom rubbed the unshed tears from his eyes and glared down at his table. He had once again sold his soul to the devil by helping Wallace again and he knew that once again Karma was going to toy with him hard…he just prayed that no more suffering would come to his wife…he knew that his heart wouldn't be able to take it.

His thoughts slowly turned to his late friend John, causing his heart to constrict in pain. His best friend was gone…gunned down by the woman he vowed to love with all of his heart. Dom furrowed his brows…John was the only one that knew about his crooked cop days.

Dom swallowed the lump that formed in his throat; he, John and Wallace had grown up together and had been the best of friends since preschool. When they were in the 6th grade, Donny Chiba had moved to town; he was down to earth, athletic, handsome and rich. All the girls loved him and he was everything Wallace wanted to be and he hated him for it.

By the time they were seniors in high school, John, Dom and Wallace were football jocks…or to be more precise; asshole jocks. They were the one who shoved people into their lockers and bullied people for no reason. Donny and his friend A.J practically ruled the school, being football jocks themselves, straight A students and loved by all. To add more fuel to the fire, Donny rivaled Wallace for the position as the star quarterback. Donny held the position since the 9th grade, though unfortunately for the young promising athlete, Wallace claimed the title in their senior year; Donny was not at all pleased with the decision.

Wallace was ecstatic that he finally achieved the position he craved since he was a freshman and to have finally beaten his arch nemesis in something he desired most, added more frosting to the cake.

On any afternoon after school, Wallace and his friends would stalk random prey and harass them, but on that afternoon they were looking for their latest victim; a Junior name Hotaru Tomoe. To be honest, the girl creeped them out…she only wore long sleeved shirts and pants or long skirts that consisted of black and purple. Her complexion was as pale as a ghost's and her raven black short cropped hair didn't help her pale skin in the least. What creeped them out the most was her haunted dark violet eyes…it was as if they could see into your soul.

Wallace seemed to have a bit of an obsession with picking on the girl since she had accidentally bumped into him 2 months prior. The three had found her at her locker, quickly trying to gather her belongings so she could head home. Wallace had grinned maliciously and shoved the girl into her locker, causing the girl to cry out and drop her bag, its contents littering the floor.

Donny and A.J. had come out of the locker rooms and was walking down the hallway as Wallace shoved the girl into her locker. Being the guy that he was, Donny ran down the hall to Hotaru's aid. He had shoved Wallace, telling him to lay off and leave Hotaru alone. Wallace wasn't having it and shoved Donny back, starting a full out brawl between the two classmates. The fight ended with the both of them taking a ride on the ambulance; Wallace with a broken arm and severely dislocated shoulder and Donny with stitches in his lip and forehead and a concussion.

Wallace's injuries were severe enough that he was declared to never to play football again and he lost his position as the star quarterback and Donny claimed the title when he was healed from his own injuries. Wallace's hatred for Donny had escalated by a tenfold and he blamed his crushed dreams on the teen; Wallace began to change. His grades dropped and he began to hang with the wrong crowds and in no time the teen began the fast life of selling narcotics.

Despite what Wallace had fallen victim too, John and Dom had proceeded to accomplish their goals and prepared themselves for the police academy. After their high school graduation, Wallace decided not to attend college and continued to stay in the drug dealing business as John and Dom went off to the police academy alongside Donny and A.J.

Although John and Dom were against their friend's choice of work, that didn't dampen their friendship in the least. The three of them stayed very close and by the time Dom and John had graduated from the police academy, the two of them had begun their careers in law enforcement; Dom working in Juuban and John transferring to Yokohoma. Dom and Jen had just started dating and John and Malorie were married. Wallace had moved to Yokohoma as well and moved on from selling marijuana to selling heroin and cocaine; bringing in hoards of cash. Wallace had just met Ellen who worked in the same physical therapy building he happened to be attending for his high school injury.

John and Wallace stayed very close being that they lived in the same town as Dom began to grow distant from them as the three of them began to settle down and start their own families. Over the years, Dom had fallen into money problems, fallen victim to gambling and now barely had a dime to support his growing family. Beryl was already a year old and Jen had just found out that she was a few weeks pregnant with Diamond.

Wallace had found Dom sitting at the bar one night trying to drown away his stress with as much liquor as he could. After much arguing and a near fist fight, Dom broke down and told his friend about the situation he had gotten himself into and Wallace gave him a proposition he couldn't refuse. If he helped him with his trafficking, he would get him out of his debt and give him the money he needs to support his family; without a second thought, Dom jumped on the idea.

Despite Wallace's choice of work, the man was actually quite intelligent. He started a truck driving business which was actually a cover up for is drug trafficking. If any of Wallace's drivers was caught delivering their goods, Dom was suppose to drop their charges to something minor so his men would get off easy and not serve any prison time, thus keeping his business running on a constant.

With four write offs, Dom had his gambling debts paid off , his house paid in full and had a nice amount of money in the bank. Though, Dom had gotten hooked onto the fast money and wanted to continue working with Wallace and the drug dealer welcomed the idea openly. Though, all the money and the glory couldn't last forever as Wallace's arch nemesis and Tokyo's most prestige cop, Donny Chiba, finally got the big time drug dealer where he wanted him.

Wallace was caught trafficking with well over $10 million dollars worth of narcotics. This was going to be the deal that was going to be Dom's last…the deal that Wallace had planned on being his last too. The dealer was actually going to call it quits…he would have all the money he would ever need and would be able to spend the rest of his days with his wife and kids.

Right before it all came crashing down that night, Wallace had told Dom to go home and to go tend to his depressed wife and now three children. He had told him that he would make sure everything went well than head home himself…they shook hands, patted each other on the back and parted ways.

About an hour after Dom had left, Donny and his crew had come plowing through Wallace's office, taking everything the drug dealer had worked so hard for…his dreams had come to an end by the man he hated most.

Yes…Karma was a bitch.

Dom had gone home that night and spent the remainder of the evening with his wife and kids; he didn't know what happened to his partner in crime until the next morning when he found an unexpected guest in his office.

_**-/-/-/-Flashback-/-/-/ -**_

_Walking towards his office, Dom smiled at the receptionist than made his way over to his office, arching a brow as the door was slightly ajar. Pushing the door open, he scanned the already lit room, eyes falling upon his friend John sitting in his seat, behind his desk._

_Dom arched a brow questioningly. "John?" he paused, scratching at the back of his head. "What are you doing here?"_

_John tilted his head to the side with a small frown on his face. "Wallace is in jail."_

_Dom furrowed his brows. "In jail? For what?"_

"_Donny busted him last night shipping nearly $10 million worth of narcotics from his trucking company."_

_Dom closed his office door behind him and leaned heavily against it. "That's a lot of drugs."_

"_No shit." muttered John, turning to look at Dom's computer screen. "Did you know anything about it?"_

_Dom was slightly taken aback by the question and frowned a bit. "No…why would you ask me that?" Dom swallowed deeply as he felt a bead of perspiration trail down the side of his face, wondering if Wallace had snitched on him._

_A scowl slowly formed on John's face. "It seems that a few of Wallace's goons had been captured in the past with severe charges…only for the charges to be magically dropped to something minor." John drummed his fingertips along the top of the desk he resided at. "Guess whose name I found on all those write offs?"_

"_Whose?"_

_Dom jumped slightly as John slammed his fist down on the desk and stood abruptly and made his way towards Dom, shoving the slightly shorter man up against the way by the collar of his shirt. "Your name was on all of those fucking documents!"_

_John shook his head as Dom stared back at him guiltily. "What the hell is the matter with you?"_

_Dom shoved John off of him and rubbed at his throat. "There is nothing wrong with me."_

_John took a few steps back, running both hands through hair incredulously. "There's nothing wrong with you? Are you kidding me?"John shook his head. "You've been writing off criminals to help Wallace with his deals. You are a fucking cop! Are you crazy?"_

"_Lower your voice John, damn!" snapped Dom as he began to pace his small office. _

"_You can lose your job over this!"_

"_Don't you think I know that?" Dom sighed heavily, crossing his arms over his chest. "So…are you going to turn me in?"_

_John grunted. "Depends…tell me why you started working with Wallace." _

"_John…"_

"_Tell me…or I can't help you."_

_Dom swallowed deeply, "Alright man…alright...I'll tell you everything."_

"_Good…now how long have you been working with Wallace?"_

"_For a while."_

"_How long?"_

"_Nearly 6 years."_

"_Holy shit man! Are you serious?" John shook his head appalled as Dom nodded his head._

"_Why?" questioned John._

_Dom clenched his jaw as he hesitated for a moment. "I-I had gotten into some serious gambling debts."_

"_How much are you talking?"_

"_$200,000."_

_John's eyes nearly bugged out of his head. "Christ!"_

"_I was losing my home, I was maxed out on my credit cards…I couldn't get any more loans. I was desperate."_

"_Why didn't you come to me Dom? I could have helped you…and helped you out of all of that the right way." _

"_It wasn't like I went to him and begged him for a job John! I was at the bar down here in Juuban and Wallace just happened to come through. He saw my trying to drown away my sorrows and approached me and kept trying to get me to tell him what was wrong. We got into a huge argument and nearly fought…and then I finally broke down and told him what I had gotten myself into; he gave me a proposition."_

_Dom looked up at John and stared him hard in the eyes. "If I do a couple of write-offs, he'd clear my debt."_

"_And you agreed."_

"_Of course I did. My family depends on me! I'd be damned if they're going to live on the streets because of the stupid things that I've done." _

_John sighed heavily, running a hand through his raven locks. "So it took you 6 years to pay off your debts?"_

_Dom glanced shamefully down at the ground. "No…I had all that I need with four write-offs…but…"_

"_You got addicted to the money."_

_The young silver haired cop nodded his head. "Yeah…and the fucked up thing about it is that this was going to be the last."_

_John arched a brow. "What do you mean?"_

"_This deal was going to be the last; Wallace and I were calling it quits. This deal would have had us set for the rest of our lives. It was time to spend our days with our families…the whole purpose of why we were doing this in the first place. "_

_John chewed on his bottom lip. "You swear that this was your last?"_

_Dom nodded. "I swear to you…this was our last deal."_

"_Alright…I'll help you two out." John glared at his long time friend. "But from here on out…you and Wallace are done."_

_Dom laughed, arching a brow. "Are you forbidding me to see Wallace?"_

_John frowned. "Do you not realize that Wallace has taken the fall for you? Do you not realize that you owe that man everything? Wallace can blackmail you."_

_Dom shook his head with a small smile. "Come on! This is Wallace…you know, our best friend since preschool? He would never blackmail me."_

"_Living in that life style will make you do crazy things."_

_Dom rolled his eyes. "Whatever you say bud, I'll stay away from him."_

"_Good."_

_**-/-/-/-/End Flashback-/-/-/-/-**_

John had been true to his words and no one had ever found the write-off to prove that Dom was Wallace's accomplice. Though, John was able to help Wallace without any consequences…instead of serving 25 years in prison, he would have to serve a year behind bars and lose everything; his money, his business, his house and his cars.

Wallace readily agreed…he was an intelligent man. They would take everything that was in his name…but they couldn't take anything that was in girlfriend's name. Wallace had gone off to prison and only served 6months on the account of good behavior, once out of prison, he and Ellen were married. Dom had kept up on his end of the deal and severed all ties with Wallace and proceeded to work and spend his days with his family.

Though, that had all changed when nearly two years after the drug bust ordeal, Dom received an unwelcomed phone call from Wallace. His wife Ellen was dead and he needed her death written off as a suicide; if he declined, than he would expose the truth behind their partnership.

If he were to be exposed…than John would be exposed for helping the both of them...he had no other choice...he had to do it.

Dom did what he had to do to get Ellen's accident written off as a suicide; later that night he found himself standing on John's door step in the pouring rain, guilt and shame written clearly upon his face. He spilled everything to John, telling him the truth behind Ellen's death and what he had to do to keep the both of them from losing their jobs. As to be expected, John was livid, but his anger was pointed solely on Wallace.

John called Wallace that night and ended their friendship; he would only be civil towards the man because of their kids; other than that, Wallace was dead to him and Dom felt the same way. Their friend had fallen off of the deep end and was on the road of no return.

Now here it is…two years after Ellen's death and once again Wallace has found him and was pulling him down a dark path once again.

Dom sighed wearily; now he had no one to talk to…no on to confide in…his best friend was gone and his former best friend was making his life a living hell.

The good times just keeps on coming…

-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Setsuna walked into her living room and placed a tray of tea and cookies down on the coffee table. She took a seat beside Hotaru, wrapping an arm around the smaller woman's shoulders as she shifted her gaze upon A.J. whom was fixing himself a cup of tea.

"How is Darien?"

A.J. took a small sip from his tea before he responded. "He's actually doing really well. He and Andrew are as close as ever and he seems to love being with his grandfather. He's doing well in school and has gained a large group of friends." The cop smiled. "Guess who he has become friends with."

Setsuna arched a brow at a loss for words. "I have no idea."

"The Tenoh girls, Lita and Chad."

Setsuna furrowed her brows as she knew all four of the children and had no idea that they all knew each other.

"Since when?"

"They've become pretty close over the past few months, but apparently Andrew told me that Serena and Chad had met Darien at the orphanage while Amara was in the hospital. Amara had met Darien in school and Lita and the Tenohs have known each other before living in Juuban."

Hotaru rubbed at her chin. "That's interesting."

"Very."

Setsuna sipped on her tea slowly. "So how is Darien dealing with the loss?"

A.J shrugged his shoulders. "Fine I guess…but then again, he still doesn't remember anything. You really can't grieve if you don't really know what you lost."

Hotaru nodded in agreement. "True…" she slowly shook her head, pulling at the sleeves of her long sleeve black blouse. "I still can't believe that Donny is gone. It's so surreal."

A.J. sighed heavily at the thought of his deceased best friend. "I know…Darien is so much like him…and his resemblance to him is ridiculous."

"Yes it is." whispered Hotaru, as she remembered eyeing Darien when she had attended Donny and his family's funeral service a few months ago.

A.J. cleared his throat, wanting to change the subject. "How are the therapy sessions going, have you gotten any information yet from the girls?"

Hotaru shook her head. "No I haven't gotten any new information yet. Right now I'm just trying to warm up to the girls and get them to trust me. I believe I'm already there with Serena but Amara on the other hand…I'm going to have to try a different approach."

"A different approach?" questioned Setsuna.

Hotaru nodded. "Amara's a tough nut to crack…I'm going to have to get on her level."

"I don't understand." replied A.J. with furrowed brows.

"I'm going to have to expose myself to her. I'm going to show her that I really do understand what she has gone through."

"You are going to talk to her about your own abuse?" Setsuna nearly screeched as her eyes widened. Hotaru never really spoke about her abuse, even too her own lover and best friends.

"Yes I am."

"Do you think that is wise?" questioned Setsuna, a bit concerned.

"Amara needs to see me as a friend…someone she can confide in. Right now, I am nothing more than a shrink trying to pry into her business."

"I understand that…the more we had tried to pry into the death of her mother, the colder and more closed off she became. "

"Exactly." replied Hotaru, placing her cup of tea down on her the table. "Just give some more time…I know that I can do this."

"Of course you can…you're the best." replied A.J. with a smile as he sat back in his seat. "I've come across something quite interesting the other evening at work pertaining to this case."

Both women arched their brows curiously as Setsuna spoke. "What is it?"

"You know how I've been telling you that there's been some serious suspicion behind Amara and Serena's mother's death?" Both women nodded, motioning for the cop to continue. "Well, I noticed the person that took over Ellen's case is Wallace's long time friend, Dom."

Hotaru stiffened at the mentioning of the names of her tormentors from high school. "You think he's covering for him?"

A.J. nodded. "Yes I do and I'm going to get to the bottom of this. I have to prove that things are a lot bigger than we had really had thought. I mean…this all started out as a runaway case with two little girls and now there's child abuse, incest and rape, drugs, a possible murder, lies and deception." A.J paused as he hesitated on saying what was on his mind.

"Plus…I think Wallace had something to do with Donny's death."

Setsuna nearly choked on her tea as Hotaru gasped loudly. "What makes you think that?" questioned Setsuna with narrowed eyes.

"You know how those two hated each other for years and Wallace blames him for all of his misfortune in life." A.J. sighed. "Donny crushed his football dreams."

"It was an accident though…Donny didn't intentionally mess up Wallace's arm and shoulder." Whispered Hotaru.

"No he didn't, but to Wallace, Donny had purposely done it. On top of all that, Donny was the one who busted Wallace for trafficking drugs, causing the man to lose everything and serve prison time. Wallace has a lot of anger towards the man which could have lead him to murder. The most valuable piece of information that I have is that Donny was killed by a semi…Wallace had own a trucking company that drove semis."

"But all of that was taken when he was busted."

"No, everything was not taken. He had a lot of things placed under his wife's name: homes, vehicles, money…" A.J. sighed. "On top of all of that…the man is nowhere to be found…like he disappeared off the face of this earth."

"Do you think he's looking for his daughters?" questioned Setsuna after a moment of silence.

A.J furrowed his brows. "I hope not."

"He is the last thing that they need." muttered Hotaru under her breath, slowly stirring her tea with a small spoon.

Setsuna chewed on her bottom lip. "Especially since the Tsukino's want to adopt the girls."

Hotaru arched a brow. "Since when?"

"We had talked to them about it a few weeks ago, but it was a definite when I spoke to Elaine last night."

"If Wallace were to find out…things can go really wrong."

"I know." whispered Setsuna softly. "But the Tsukino are well aware of the outcome this may bring…but in all honestly, I'm glad they're doing this. Amara and Serena seem to be really happy, and the Tsukino really love those girls.

"They really do…I see them all the time at Dad's arcade. The girls' have become good friends with Andrew too and Dad is always giving them free tokens. Dad really adores Serena and spoils her with milkshakes."

Hotaru giggled. "Serena was talking about those milkshakes at our last therapy session; she's addicted to them."

"That child is addicted to food period." muttered A.J. as he remember the countless of occasions he had spotted the small blonde barreling down food like she's never eaten before.

Setsuna laughed. "I can vouch for that."

A.J. looked down at his watch and stood up abruptly. "Well I need to head out and run some errands before I get Andrew and Darien from school." He gave both women a hug and Setsuna escorted him to the door, where he bid a farewell and was soon gone. Setsuna closed the door softly behind her and turned, arching a brow as Hotaru sat on the edge of the couch and was staring at her intensely.

"What?" questioned Setsuna, a little unnerved.

Hotaru slowly chewed on her bottom lips as she eyed her girlfriend. "Tell me…why are you so bent on getting to the bottom of this case?"

Setsuna slightly stiffened, letting a small frown fall upon her face. "I'm treating this case just as any other case I have done in the past."

Hotaru slowly shook her head, frowning herself. "No you're not…" the raven haired girl crossed her arms over her chest. "This case is bringing back memories."

Setsuna clenched her fists and quickly made her way over to the coffee table and started to clear it off, gathering everything and bringing them into the kitchen.

"I don't know what you are trying to get at."

"Amara and Serena remind you of the things that I used to go through when I lived with my father…before you guys helped me." Hotaru glanced down at the ground rubbing at her arms self consciously as she started to become lost in her own dark past that she thought she had finally put behind her. "It doesn't help that we are dealing with the children of the guys that used to bully me back in high school...You've always hated Wallace and his friends for the things that he has done to me…and I know you hate him more now because of what he may have done to his wife and children."

"He's a monster and needs to be locked away." growled Setsuna, gripping a freshly washed spoon in her hand in anger.

Hotaru pushed herself off of the couch and made her way into the kitchen, walking up behind her seething girlfriend and wrapped her arms tightly around the woman from behind, resting her chin upon Setsuna's shoulder.

"Wallace will get what is coming for him and I'll be damned if he gets his hands on those girls. You're the reason why those girls are happy, the reason why they are with a couple that loves them to death and want to raise them as their own. They're going to be adopted by a great family…they're going to be okay Baby…no more harm will come to them."

Setsuna blinked back a few tears as she turned in her lover's arms and held her tight. "You really think so?"

Hotaru smiled, kissing her girlfriend lightly on the lips and embracing her tightly. "I know they are going to be fine…don't worry so much."

Setsuna let a small smile come upon her face as she gave a slight nod. "Okay…I will try."

Author: That's all for now, please review and let me know what you think!


	20. B2: Chapter 4

Author: Thanks so much for the reviews you guys! Keep em' coming! Well here's the next chapter and I hope you enjoy!

Disclaimer: Don't own Sm

Amara just about skipped her way down the hallway of her school and quickly made her way towards her classroom as she spotted Michelle sitting at her desk, pulling her school books out of her book bag. Grinning wildly, the short haired blonde skipped to her seat beside the aqua-haired girl, and sat down.

Michelle arched a brow at her friend's unusual giddiness. "What's up?"

Amara beamed up at her friend. "Ken and Elaine are going to let me race."

"Wow really? When?"

"I start training today, but my first race will be in three weeks."

"That's awesome! Well, let me know when and the time, I want to go."

Amara arched her brows in surprise. "You want to watch me race?"

"Of course I do…besides I want to see if you're as good as you say you are. " Michelle grinned, resting her chin on the palms of her hands. "Plus, you went to my violin recital, it's only right that I go to your first race."

Amara smiled, pulling out a notebook and pencil. "I wanted to go to your recital. I wanted to hear you play. "

Michelle arched a brow curiously. "So what did you think about it? You never did say…"

"I loved it…and the way you play is amazing."

Michelle blushed, looking down at her own notebook. "I'm not that great…I need to practice more."

Amara laughed. "I think you practiced enough…you play really good."

The aqua-haired girl smiled softly. "Thanks." She raised her head and looked towards the blonde. "So…did you have any more good news?"

The tomboy nodded. "Yeah, Serena and I are staying for good."

"What do you mean?"

"Ken and Elaine want to adopt us."

Michelle's eyes widened. "Wow! Really?"

Amara nodded. "Yep!"

"That's great, I'm happy for you."

Amara smiled as Michelle leaned back in her seat, drumming her pencil against her notebook. "Are you coming over today when Serena comes for tutoring?"

"No, I'll be at the Go-Kart track, but I'll be there when Ken picks up Serena from your house. You know how Ken and your mom like to talk; I'll probably be over there for a while."

Michelle nodded at how true the statement was with a smile. "Okay, cool."

Just than their teacher stepped into the classroom, telling her students to pull out their math textbooks and homework.

-/-/-/-/-/-

Serena yawned, trying to rub the sleep from her eyes. She nearly screamed as she felt someone drape an arm around her shoulders and pull her tightly towards their body.

"Hey Serena!" exclaimed Mina with a wide grin.

Serena giggled, untangling herself from her cousin's grasp. "Hey Mina." She straightened her book bag upon her shoulders as the duo began to walk down the hall towards their classroom.

"I told Amara that you're here."

"Oh yea? What she say?"

Serena smiled. "She didn't believe me at first…I still don't think she does…not until she sees you for herself."

Mina laughed softly, shaking her head. "I'm not surprised."

"Yeah…plus I have some more stuff to tell you."

"Like what?"

Both girls stopped in front of their classroom door and faced each other. Serena chewed on her bottom lip slowly, averting her eyes away from her cousin.

"The Tsukinos want to adopt Amara and I"

Mina frowned deeply, furrowing her brows in confusion. "Adopt you…you mean you guys aren't going back to Uncle Wallace?"

Serena shook her head. "No we're not."

Mina's frown deepened. "Why…don't you guys want to go back?"

Serena involuntarily shivered at the thought of going back to her father. "I never want to go back."

Mina swallowed deeply at the tone of her cousin's voice. "Why not…did he do something to you guys?"

Serena slowly nodded her head, now gazing up into her cousin's eyes. "He's done a lot of things."

Mina couldn't shake the feeling of uneasiness that well in the pit of her stomach as she pondered whether or not she wanted to know the truth…but she just had to know.

"What kind of things?"

Serena shifted her gaze towards the doorway, spotting their teacher heading their way. "We need to go inside." Serena paused in thought before continuing. "How about I get Elaine and Ken to make dinner for you and Uncle Ronnie?"

Mina arched a brow. "Why?"

Serena rolled her eyes. "If you come over, than we can finally talk. I can also prove to Amara that you are really here and…I want you to meet the Tsukinos…they're really nice."

Mina slightly frowned, still not understanding why her cousins didn't want to back to their beloved father; though, she slowly nodded her head as she gazed into her cousin's hopeful gaze.

"Alright…I'll talk to my dad tonight."

Serena grinned, enveloping Mina in a tight hug. "Great! I'll talk to them tonight."

The bubbly blonde quickly released her cousin and made her way into the classroom as Mina slowly followed after her, a small frown on her face.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Elaine made her way into the cafeteria of the hospital and quickly found her usual table towards the back of her room where she saw her friend Amelia already seated. She took her seat, placing down her tray and purse and smiled up at her long time friend.

Amelia placed her fork beside her plate loaded with eggs and bacon and smiled. "So…how did it go?"

The lavender haired woman sighed slightly. "Well…Ken took the news about the pregnancy great…but the girls didn't respond to it happily.

Amelia arched a brow curiously. "How did they take it?"

"They were upset…very upset. Amara stormed out of the room."

The blue haired surgeon leaned back in her seat slightly baffled. "Why?"

"They thought that…by me and Ken having this baby…we wouldn't want them anymore. They thought that we would send them back to the orphanage."

Amelia couldn't help the laugh that escaped her and she tried to smother her giggles with her hands. "Are you serious?"

Elaine nodded. "Yeah…I just don't get why! Ken and I try our best to show the girls that we love them dearly."

Amelia smiled and placed a comforting hand upon the woman's shoulder. "You have to remember what Amara and Serena have gone through. They've been hurt deeply by someone they love full heartedly and we still don't know the extent of how deeply they were hurt or all of what they have gone through. They are always going to fear rejection from you and Ken or fear that you may hurt them just like their father had done."

Elaine slowly shook her head, tears welling in her eyes. "What are we suppose to do to make them stop feeling like that?"

"Nothing."

Elaine furrowed her brows. "What?"

"You can't do anything…they have to come to terms with everything on their own. You and Ken just keep doing what you're doing and show the girls that you love them and will never hurt them. That is the only way to get through to them."

The lavender haired woman nodded in understanding. "Is that what you're doing with Lita?"

"Yeah…in a way; Lita is a completely different situation though."

"How do you figure?"

"While Amara and Serena had been going through their ordeal for a while…Lita's life was great. She had her family and she was happy…life according to her was perfect. Than one morning everything came crashing down in a matter of minutes and she lost everyone dear to her and nearly died herself. She saw her mother kill her entire family and the woman nearly killed Lita as well." Amelia shook her head, the ordeal still leaving her shocked till this day. "She has so much pent up anger and confusion inside her…and it kills me to see the pain on her face as she thinks of them and about what had happened. I'm just waiting for her to start lashing out."

"Has she?"

Amelia furrowed her brows in thought. "No…she hasn't lashed out at anyone…at least not that I know of, but I've seen her get this look upon her face."

"What do you mean?"

Amelia slightly shrugged her shoulders. "Sometimes I watch her while she's by herself…and she will have the darkest look upon her face, her hands will be balled up in tight fists and you can see her body trembling with concealed rage."

Elaine's eyes widened. "What do you do?"

"I pull her into a tight hug…I know that she's thinking about what had happened with her family and now she's blaming herself for what had happened. I just don't know why though…it wasn't her fault…she couldn't have stopped anything…and I tell her just that; it wasn't her fault."

"How does she respond to it?"

"She cries the most heart wrenching sobs I have ever heard in my life."

"That poor girl." whispered Elaine.

"Yeah…she's getting better though. She and Amy are just about inseparable now."

Elaine smiled. "How are Amy and Michelle?"

The bluenette grinned. "Great…ever since Amara and Serena have come into their lives, they seem so much happier."

Elaine giggled softly. "Those two seem to make everyone happier."

"They really do." Amelia began eating again and paused. "We need to hurry up, our shift starts soon."

The lavender haired foster mom's eyes widened as she quickly picked up her fork and began shoveling food into her mouth as Amelia shook her head with a grin.

"If you keep eating like that you're going to be…"

Elaine suddenly gagged, her face turning an interesting shade of green. She suddenly stood from her seat, bolting out of the cafeteria and towards the nearest bathroom.

"Sick…" muttered Amelia, eating the last few bites of her food and stood, grabbing both her's and Elaine's tray and disposed of them. She went and purchased a bottle of water and headed towards the bathroom, knowing that Elaine was going to be grateful for the water.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Serena began to wash her hands in the sink in the girl's bathroom in her school. Once done she grabbed the paper towel and proceeded to dry her hands as the bathroom door opened. Tossing the now wet paper towel in the trash, she looked up, taking a startled step back. She furrowed her brows as she saw Beryl standing before her; a malicious grin upon her face.

The young blonde slowly licked her lips, taking a quickly glance towards the closed bathroom door before settling her gaze upon Beryl.

"Hi…" squeaked the blonde, silently berating herself for how weak she sounded.

Beryl grinned, cracking her knuckles and stepping towards the blonde. "Looks like I finally got you all by yourself."

Serena gulped, realizing that she was all alone. "Yeah…it looks that way."

"Perfect!" mused the fiery red head as she clenched a hand into a tight fist and without warning the older girl swung, her fist clipping cleanly across Serena's chin. The blonde's head turned painfully to the side and she dropped haplessly to the floor.

Grabbing at her chin, Serena didn't have time to react as Beryl stood over her, grabbing her roughly by the collar of her shirt and punched Serena in the face. Before the red head could make another hit, the blonde clawed her attacker across the face.

Beryl screamed out, releasing the blonde and grabbing at her now bleeding face. Serena took this opportunity to tackle the girl to the ground and attempted to head towards the door but as she scrambled to her feet, Beryl grabbed a hold of her ankle.

Serena flopped heavily to the floor as Beryl snatched her leg back and proceeded to crawl up the kicking girl and she snaked her arm around Serena's neck, pulling back and causing the poor blonde to gag and gasp for air.

Tightening her grip, Beryl smirked as she stood to her feet, pulling Serena up with her. She grabbed the blonde by the back of her collar and shoved her into the trash can. Serena went head first into metal trash can that was mounted into the wall. She hit the ground with a heavy thud and cried out when Beryl ran up on her and kicked her repeatedly in the side and stomach.

As Beryl attempted another kick, Serena grabbed the offending foot and twisted it, causing the red head to fall to the ground in pain. She quickly climbed upon Beryl's back, grabbing a fist full of red locks and pulled, making Beryl stand to her feet with her. She suddenly shoved Beryl forwards by the hair and rammed her head into the wall.

Beryl fell to the floor as Serena released the death grip she had on her hair and she grabbed at her side and slowly made her stand to her feet with her. She suddenly shoved Beryl forwards by the hair and rammed her head into the wall. Beryl fell to the floor as Serena released the death grip she had on her hair and she grabbed at her side and slowly made her way to the door.

Beryl grabbed at her head with a shaky hand and suddenly smirked as she looked towards the toilet. She turned her gaze over towards the blonde that was trying leave and she quickly stood to feet and rammed Serena in her back. The blonde flew forward and slammed into the wall and before she could realize what was happening, Beryl had her arm around her throat once again.

Tightening her hold, Beryl dragged Serena across the cold tiled floor as the blonde kicked and clawed at the opposing arm. Dragging the girl into the bathroom stall and towards the toilet, the red head pulled Serena up and quickly grabbed the by the back of her neck and head with both hands and attempted to push her head into toilet water. Fortunately, Serena's reflexes were faster and the young blonde latched both hands on either side of the toilet, desperately trying to fight against Beryl's attempt to drown her.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Mrs. O'neal looked up at the clock, realizing that Serena was taking a long time in the bathroom. Getting the suddenly feeling that something wasn't right, the elementary teacher looked towards her quietly working students, her gaze falling upon Lita as she caught the girl looking up at the clock as well.

"Lita."

The brunette jumped slightly and pouted, figuring that she was getting in trouble for not doing her work. The young girl quietly stood to her feet and she felt some of the students casting glances her way in curiosity. Making her way to her teacher's desk, the girl stood before the desk, looking down questioningly at her teacher.

"Yes?"

The teacher leaned closer towards her student, motioning for the girl to lean in as well. "Can you please go to the bathroom and check on Serena for me?"

Lita suddenly smiled and nodded her head vigorously. "Yeah, I can do that!"

Mrs. O'Neal smiled, handing the child the hall pass. "Thank you."

Lita nodded and quickly exited to the room and Mrs. O'Neal furrowed her brows as she watched as Diamond looked towards Serena's vacant seat and then up at the clock. He frowned slightly as he looked down at his school work as if he was lost in thought; Mrs. O'Neal frowned herself, getting the feeling that something must really be wrong.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Lita tried her hardest not to run as she made her way to the bathroom but she just had to make sure that Serena was okay. The blonde was taking a lot longer than usual and she couldn't help but feel that something was wrong. Coming to a sliding halt in front of the bathroom door, she pushed it open and her eyes widened in horror as she spotted Beryl trying to shove her best friend's head in the toilet.

An uncontrollable rage suddenly over took the brunette and the girl blacked out.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Serena could feel the sweat rolling down her face and the tears of fear welling in her eyes as she was quickly losing the battle against Beryl and her face was a mere few centimeters away from the toilet water. Just as she was about to give in, she felt Beryl abruptly release her and the blonde rolled away from the toilet, rubbing at the rapidly bruising neck.

She suddenly snapped her head towards the stall's doorway as she heard a thud and her eyes widened as she saw Lita ruthlessly pounding upon Beryl's exposed face. The blonde shivered as she saw the wild crazed look burning in her friend's eyes…it was as if Lita wasn't Lita anymore.

Serena quickly climbed to her feet as she realized that Beryl was no long struggling and Lita had yet to stop her vicious attack. Thinking quickly, the blonde lunged for Lita, pulling the girl roughly away from the unconscious Beryl and held the still swinging brunette tightly.

"Calm down Lita…it's over!" exclaimed Serena desperately trying to get through to Lita as the girl still struggled against her, but the blonde refused to release the girl. It finally took a few minutes before Lita was left spent and laid languidly against the blonde, breathing heavily, finally hearing her friend's soothing words that everything was alright.

Once Serena was sure that her friend wasn't going to try anything, she loosened her hold; Lita quickly crawled towards the sinks, staring down at Beryl's unmoving body, face visibly paling. Serena looked down upon the badly battered red head and she nudged her slightly and didn't receive a response. She shifted, rolling onto her knees and grasped Beryl's shoulder and rolled her towards her and gasped at the girl's bloody face.

Serena shifted wide eyes upon her friend whose eyes were welling with tears. "We need to go get somebody."

Lita shook her head fiercely. "No!"

The blonde frowned. "She's hurt Lita, we need to go get somebody."

"And get in trouble?"

Serena furrowed her brows and looked down at Beryl as the girl slightly stirred. "Let's clean her up…"

Lita smiled with a nod of the head. She stood to her feet and grabbed some paper towels and wet them in the sink. She squatted down and to clean the blood from the red head's face, quickening her speed as Beryl let off a soft groan and began to awaken.

Beryl suddenly shot up, causing both Serena and Lita to jump back. The red head looked around her surroundings cautiously before settling weary eyes on both Serena and Lita. With a snarl she quickly stood to her feet and unsteadily made her way to the sink and scowled as she saw the bloody mess of a face staring back at her. Gritting her teeth she turned on the water and began to splash water on her face as Serena and Lita had their eyes glued on her.

Once Beryl was finished she turned off the water and dried her face with a paper towel and glared down at the two younger girls. The whole left side of her face was nearly purple and swollen badly and you totally see that she was trying her damnedest to hide her pain. On top of that she had three scratches going from one side of her face to the other.

"This isn't over." growled the red head before she turned and stalked out of the bathroom, nearly tripping over her feet on her way out.

When the bathroom door closed, Serena turned to Lita, using the wall for support as she began to fully rise to her feet.

"We need to go."

Lita nodded in agreement, standing to her feet as well. "Yeah we do…are you okay?"

"I will be." muttered Serena as she gritted her teeth. She turned her gaze towards Lita, noticing the blood on her knuckles.

"Wash your hands…we have to make Mrs. O'neal think that nothing is wrong."

Lita nodded, quickly washing her hands. Once they were dried, the brunette turned towards her friend. "Come on…you sure you can walk by yourself?"

"I will have to." whispered the blonde with a wince. "We need to hurry up and get this over with."

With a nod, both girls quickly exited the bathroom, looking down the hallways to make sure Beryl wasn't there. Confirming that the red head was nowhere in sight they both made their way back to their classroom.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Mrs. O'Neal drummed her fingertips upon her desk, trying to decide whether or not she needed to check on Lita and Serena herself. They had been gone for a long time now and she was becoming extremely worried, especially with Diamond constantly looking up at the clock and towards Lita and Serena's empty chairs.

Looking up at the clock once more, she noticed that it was almost time for lunch. Just as she was about to stand to her feet and go find the girls herself, her classroom door opened and both Lita and Serena shuffled themselves into the classroom.

The teacher was about to berate them, but as she stared into Lita's pale face and Serena's bruised face, she bite back her remarks and concern once again overcame her.

"Take your seats…I want to talk to you at the end of school today."

Serena and Lita gulped as their attempt to act as if nothing was wrong blew up in their face. Nodding, both girls made their way to their seat, their classmates staring up at them and beginning to whisper. As Serena made her way to her desk, she and Diamond caught eyes and the young boy's face twisted in anger as he knew what had happened. Gritting his teeth he broke his eyes away from the slightly startled blonde and down at his school work.

Serena furrowed her brows as she stared into Diamond's angry eyes and turned away from him with a deep sigh.

"Great…now I'll probably have to deal with Diamond too." She muttered, making her way to her seat and flopping down heavily into her chair. She sighed once more as she felt Mina, Molly and Amy staring at her intently.

Just as she was about she shrink down in her seat, her teacher stood from her desk, announcing that it was lunchtime. Serena grinned and tried to head to the front of the classroom for the lunch line but her teacher stopped her, pulling both her and Lita to the side. She told the rest of her students to head to the cafeteria and that she would be right behind them. Once the students were gone, Mrs. O'Neal looked down at Lita and Serena.

"After lunch I want the both of you to head to the nurse's station." When the girls nodded, she smiled. "Okay, now go on ahead." She replied escorting both girls out of the room.

Author: Well that's all for now ^_^ Hope you enjoyed and please review!


	21. B2: Chapter 5

Author: Thanks so much for the reviews! I really appreciate it! I know it's been a while, but I have been working on a few fics at one time and I've decided to work on four different stories at once.(I really need to stop writing on so many stories at one time) Now…to answer some question…I had thought about bringing in the whole Senshi business into the story, but I think it will make things a bit more complicated and deter away from the story; so I've officially dropped the idea. I know many of you have asked if the kids are going to grow up in this story and yes they will. I am still trying to decide at what point I want them to age…I still have a few things I want to happen before I get to that point. I also haven't forgotten about the therapy sessions and it will soon come into play in the story. Now bare with me everyone, I am writing this story off the top of my head and I do plan on finishing this…it's just taking a bit longer than I had first planned. Anyways! I hope you enjoy the chapter and don't forget to review! It really does help to motivate me! ^_^

Disclaimer: Don't own Sm

Serena gritted her teeth and held her side as she made her way out of the classroom as Lita looked down at her with worry.

"Are you okay?"

"I will be." muttered the blonde with a small frown. She looked up and spotted Molly, Amy and Mina leave the line of their other classmates and head towards them.

Mina reached them first with wide eyes. "Oh my God! What happened?"

Serena sighed. "Beryl."

Molly and Amy frowned deeply as Mina cocked her head to the side in confusion. "Who's Beryl?"

"The devil." bit out Serena causing her cousin to furrow her brows and shift blue eyes upon Lita. The brunette sighed with a roll of the eyes.

"She's Diamond's older sister."

Mina frowned deeply turning Serena. "The kid that hit you in the face with that dodge ball?"

"Yeah…him." Serena said darkly.

Mina's frown only deepened as her confusion grew. "Why would she do this?"

Serena shrugged, only to wince in pain. "I don't know…maybe she was getting back at me for the fight I had with Diamond a few months ago."

"What fight?"

Serena rolled her eyes with a heavy sigh. "Look I'll explain all of this later; right now I want to eat and sit down."

Mina sighed but nodded her head in defeat, wrapping an arm around her cousin's shoulders and escorted her towards the cafeteria.

"Okay, we'll talk about this later."

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Beryl growled lowly under her breath as she felt at the tender scratch wounds she had on her face with her fingertips softly; she hurt like hell and was beyond pissed off. If it wasn't for that meddling brunette, Serena would have been a goner and she would have had Darien all to herself.

The red head scowled…this wasn't over…no…this was far from over.

The young girl made her way to her classroom, opening the door and entered, causing her teacher to stop in the middle of his lecture to stare at her with wide eyes, her fellow classmates doing the same.

"W-what happened?" stuttered the elderly man, eyes wide with shock.

"Nothing." muttered Beryl as she quickly found her seat at the back of the classroom.

"You need to go to the nurse's station."

"No I don't!" snapped Beryl as she opened up her history book and pulled out her notebook. If she didn't want to go anywhere…than she wasn't…it was as simple as that.

The teacher frowned deeply at his student's lack of respect, but all he could do was shake his head. This was typical of Beryl and there was no point in arguing; the girl was born to be defiant.

That girl was going to have a hard life if she kept that nasty little attitude of hers.

Pushing the thoughts passed him, the teacher cleared his throat, gaining the attention of his students and continued on with his lecture.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Lita couldn't help but keep a worried gaze upon Serena as she helped the blonde down the hall and towards the nurse's station. Serena was extremely pale and looked as if she was going to start blowing chunks; her jaw line and neck already turning purple.

"Serena…are you sure you okay?" asked the brunette for the millionth time.

"I'm fine Lita…I'm just …I just have a headache."

"A headache?" questioned Lita.

"Beryl rammed me head first into the trashcan…my head is pounding." The blonde swallowed deeply, trying to ignoring her stomach turning painfully and the sudden sensation to gag. "The sooner I get an icepack the better."

"You're going to need more than one icepack." muttered Lita.

"I heard that." muttered back Serena.

Lita let off a small giggle as they came up on the nurse's station's door. Opening it up, Lita helped her friend inside as the nurse was heading towards them. The woman's face fell as her eyes landed upon Serena.

"What happened?" exclaimed the nurse as she rushed towards Serena and quickly got the child seated. Lita came to stand beside Serena's seat as the nurse was pulling out some ice packs. She quickly came to stand before Serena, handing the blonde two ice packs. Serena placed one on top of her head and winced as she felt a rather large bump residing there. Biting down on her bottom lip, she used the other icepack to press against her side, nearly whimpering at the contact.

"What happened?" questioned the nurse once more.

"I got into a fight."

"Again?" asked the woman incredulously.

Serena pouted. "Yes…again."

The nurse squatted down before the blonde, pulling at the girl's shirt. "Let me see your side."

The blonde nodded, letting the nurse pull up her shirt, only to hear the older woman gasp. "I think you need to go to the hospital."

Serena's eyes widened as she shook her head. "No!" The blonde suddenly lurched forward, puking up her lunch at the nurse's feet.

"Now you're definitely going…looks like you have a concussion." replied the nurse, taking another quick glance at the heavy bruising decorating the child's ribcage. "…and possibly a few broken ribs."

She quickly made her way over to her desk, and picked up the phone, calling for a custodian for clean up. Hanging up the phone, she than shifted her gaze towards Lita, just now seeing the brunette's battered hands.

"What happened to you?" exclaimed the nurse as she made her way to the tall brunette and took a hold of Lita's hands delicately.

"I broke up the fight…" replied Lita, turning her head to keep her gaze away from the nurse. The older woman shook her head in disbelief.

"You need to go to the hospital as well…I think your right hand is broken."

Lita's eyes widened. "No! I'm fine!"

"No you're not and neither is Serena. I'm calling your parents." replied the nurse as she made her way to her desk and pulled out a large binder that was full of students' names and their contact information. Once she found the right information, she picked up the phone to call the girls' guardians.

Lita turned her gaze upon Serena with a small frown. "So much for keeping this a secret."

Serena nodded solemnly placing both icepacks down on the table to rub at her aching belly. "Yep…"

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

School had finally come to an end and Beryl quickly found her father's vehicle, causing her to slow her pace, seeing Sapphire climbing into the back seat on the driver side and Diamond stood at the opposite door with it half open, a glare upon his face. She sighed heavily as she saw her father's disapproving frown as he stood at the driver's side door, arms crossed over his chest.

She already knew she was going to get it.

Burying her hands in her jacket pockets, Beryl trudged her way towards the car and attempted to climb in the passenger front seat.

"Come here."

The young red head visibly gulped, dropping her hand away from the door and walked around the front end of the car and towards her father. She stopped before him, head downcast, not daring to meet his hard gaze. She nearly yelped when her father grabbed her by the chin and roughly pulled her head up so he can get a better look at the wounds upon his daughter's face.

"What happened?"

"Nothing."

"Damn it Beryl! I swear…" snapped Dom as he dropped his hand from his daughter's face and crossed his arms once more over his chest. "You better start talking."

Beryl shifted her gaze to the ground once again. "I got into a fight."

"With who?"

Beryl absentmindedly kicked at a small pebble that was at her feet. "Serena and Lita."

"I knew it!" shouted Diamond as he pointed an accusing finger at his sister.

"Get in the car Diamond!" yelled Dom as he watched his son huff and climb into the backseat of the car. Once the door was shut, Dom turned his gaze upon his eldest child.

"Who started it?"

"They did!"

"Try again."

Beryl frowned as she looked up at her father and could see that he knew that she just told a flat out lie. Becoming angry, Beryl turned away from Dom and attempted to walk away, only to feel her father's hand grab a painful grasp around her upper arm.

Dom pulled her back, pulling her close to him. "I told you if you kept doing this shit you were going to get it, didn't I?" whispered Dom harshly.

Beryl slowly nodded her head, her voice coming out a bit shaky. "Yes."

"Well you got it girl…get in the car!" Dom released his death grip from around his daughter's arm and made his way to the driver's door. He stood there as he watched Beryl quickly climb in to the car and the man shook his head. He couldn't believe it, his kids were fighting with his former best friends' kids…damn, Karma is such a bitch!

Dom quickly climbed into his vehicle as he heard the car behind him honk at him impatiently. Pulling on his seat, he shifted his car into gear and pulled off.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Beryl sniffled as she made her way down the hall and towards her bedroom. Her pace was slow as she didn't want to further irritate the fresh welts that were now fashioned on her backside. She just couldn't wrap her mind around the fact that her father had actually hit her…yeah sure…he always made the threats but had never acted upon them.

She was his little princess…he wasn't suppose to hurt her…he had Diamond and Sapphire for that.

Stopping in front of her bedroom, Beryl threw the door open and took a few steps inside as her eyes landed on Diamond. The boy was sitting on her bed cross legged and a glare from hell upon his face.

"Why are you in my room?" snapped Beryl, wanting the little brat out of her room.

"I don't want you touching Serena ever again!" declared Diamond, completely ignoring his sister's question.

Beryl snorted with a roll of her eyes. "I'll put my hands on whoever I want."

Diamond climbed off of the bed, anger apparent on his face. "I'm warning you!"

"What are you going to do about it squirt?" mocked the red head as she shoved her brother's chest, causing the boy to stumble backwards and nearly fall. Beryl laughed and before she could react, Diamond was at her side, leg shooting out to kick his sister upon her badly bruised backside.

The red head cried out as she crumbled to her knees. Now angry, Beryl threw her hand back, hitting her little brother squarely in the nuts. The boy dropped to the floor haplessly as his sister smirked at him.

"Why do you care so much about Serena…I thought you hated her?"

Diamond grunted rolling over to his hands and knees. "I never said I hated her…and I never said I cared about her either."

Beryl arched a brow confused. "Then what's the deal?"

Diamond gazed up at his sister with a possessive gleam in his eyes. "She is mine and only mine."

Beryl frowned slightly recognizing those words…those words she has spoken many times when it came to Darien Chiba.

"If she keeps hanging all over Darien than I'm going to pound her face in every chance I get."

Diamond frowned deeply at his sister's words. "Who is Darien?"

"The love of my life!" declared Beryl with hearts in her eyes. Diamond felt a sweat drop trail down the side of his face and he abruptly stood to his feet.

"Serena likes him?"

"Probably…" Beryl nearly growled out at the thought. She suddenly looked towards her brother's retreating back as he stormed out of the room, slamming her bedroom door shut. Shrugging her shoulders, Beryl stood to her feet and began to head towards the bathroom…all she wanted was a nice hot bath.

Author: Hope you enjoyed ^_^ please review and tell me what you think!


	22. B2: Chapter 6

Author: Thanks so much for the reviews ^_^ Sorry for the wait, I had so many ideas going and I couldn't figure out what I wanted so I finally got it together! I hope you enjoy!

Disclaimer: Don't own Sm

Elaine hung up the phone with a heavy sigh, running a hand over her face. She had just gotten off the phone with the school's nurse stating that Serena was on her to the hospital with a concussion and possible broken ribs that she had received in a fight.

"If that little brat did this…"muttered Elaine darkly as she thought of Diamond. She the stood from the desk with a small growl, causing the assistant that sat beside her to jump slightly in surprise. Elaine ignored her and made her way over to the entry way of the Emergency Room to wait on her foster daughter. The woman arched a brow as she spotted Amelia leaning against the wall near the door way.

"What are you doing here?"

Amelia turned her head towards her friend. "I got a call from the school nurse about Lita coming here."

At this Elaine looked surprised. "Lita?"

"Yeah, nurse said she was in a fight and that her hand may be broken." The blue haired doctor shook her head. "I knew something like this was going to happen…I saw the warning signs."

Elaine came up behind her friend and placed a hand upon her shoulder. "You don't know what happened so relax. I received a call from the nurse too about Serena."

"Again?"

The lavender haired woman rolled her eyes with a nod of her head. "Yeah, again. She may have a concussion and a few broken ribs."

"Damn…you don't think they got into a fight with each other, do you?"

Elanie snorted. "Not at all…those two will be friends until the end." The lavender haired woman's eyes suddenly darkened as she remembered the day when Serena had last come to the hospital…when she had a little talk with Amara.

"But I think I know what this may be about."

Amelia looked upon her friend curiously. "What is it?"

"I remember when Serena got into that fight with Diamond…Amara had said that his sister wanted to fight Serena."

"You think she attacked Lita and Serena?"

"Something along those lines."

Before Amelia could ask anything else she heard the ambulance sirens, drawing her attention. "Looks like they're here."

"Yep…let's get this over with." replied Elaine, following her friend out of the door.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Elaine paced the small hospital room she was in, absentmindedly watching Dr. Patel's nurse wrap an ace bandage around Serena's torso. The poor blonde was as pale as a ghost with a minor concussion and a few heavily bruised ribs.

Elaine clenched her jaw as she had yet to get any information from Serena about how the girl had sustained her injuries and it was driving her mad. Though as badly as she wanted to know what had happened, she would rather talk to Serena alone…so…she waited.

Once the nurse was finished, he silently excused himself and left the room. Elaine took this opportunity to walk over to the bed Serena sat on and took a seat beside her.

"You okay?"

The blonde nodded her head and Elaine decided to continue. "What happened?"

Serena kept her gaze towards the ground as she rubbed at her eyes tiredly. "I was doing my normal thing and went to the bathroom before lunch. Beryl came in and punched me in the face and we started fighting; I almost clawed her eyes out!"

Elaine shook her head, she just couldn't picture this small petite blonde brawling it out with some girl…she was just so small and fragile looking…

Then again…looks can definitely be deceiving.

"Anyways…I tried to leave and she kept coming at me so I had to fight back. Then she tried to shove my head into the toilet…"

"She what?" yelled Elaine in shock.

Serena turned droopy eyes upon the woman. "She tried to shove my head in the toilet."

The lavender haired woman clenched her hands into tight fists, anger apparent upon her face. "What happened after that?"

The small blonde turned her gaze to the floor once more. "Lita saved me."

"Saved you?"

"Yep, she got Beryl off of me and beat her up…" the blonde paused and looked upon Elaine questioningly. "Is Lita okay?"

"I'm not sure yet, but I'm sure she will be." replied Elaine as she stood from the bed and began to pace before Serena. "…and the nerve of that girl! She will not get away this! Her name was Beryl right?"

Serena sighed heavily. "Don't worry about it."

Elaine snapped her head towards the blonde appalled. "What do you mean don't worry about it?"

"Getting her in more trouble is only going to make her even madder."

"I don't care if she gets mad! You know what…I'm going to kick her ass!"

On any other occasion, Serena would have been laughing her ass off at seeing Elaine so angry and flustered…and it was a plus that the woman was actually swearing, but the young blonde was not in the state of mind to show her amusement.

"No…I will handle it."

"You…you what? You're not handling anything! I'm going to handle this!" yelled Elaine as she began to pace the small room again, ranting and rambling about what she was going to do.

"Mom…"

Elaine froze in mid step, her rants coming to a halt as she looked upon Serena in surprise. Serena held her gaze for a moment before speaking.

"I will handle it."

Elaine crossed her arms over her chest skeptically, trying to shake off her shock. "How will you handle it, Serena?"

"I don't know..."

Elaine sighed...at this point and time, she didn't know what to do so she said the first thing that came to mind.

"I'm going to get a wheelchair."

"I can walk." argued Serena.

"I don't think so!" stated Elaine firmly, turning to the door. "Stay here, I will go and get you one."

Serena nodded and the woman left the room. The small blonde ran a hand tiredly through her bangs with a heavy sigh as her thoughts fell upon her older sister. The tomboy wasn't going to like this and she wasn't sure if she would be able to talk her sister out of getting Beryl back for what she has done…

Just great! The day just keeps getting better and better…

-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Amara held a frown as she sat on top of the globe shaped jungle gym as her piercing green eyes were glued on to Beryl; the red head was laying down on a bench near the basketball court.

"I wonder what happened." replied Michelle, whom sat beside her friend on the jungle gym.

Amara broke her gaze from the red head, spotting Darien, Andrew and Melvin exiting the cafeteria and running towards them.

"I don't know…maybe the guys do…they are in her class."

Michelle nodded, looking down at the three boys that were now climbing up on the gym.

"What happened to Beryl?" questioned Amara as Darien reached the top of the jungle gym.

The ebony haired boy shrugged his shoulders, finding a seat comfortable enough for him. "I don't know…looks like she got into a fight."

"I can see that…"muttered the blonde, a frown marring her features once more.

"With who?" questioned Michelle.

"Don't know." replied Darien.

"Yeah…she asked to go to the bathroom and it was taking forever. Just as our teacher was about to send someone to the bathroom to check on her, she came in looking a hot mess." replied Melvin as he adjusted his glasses upon his face.

"The teacher didn't ask what happened?" asked Michelle in surprise.

"Yeah…but she wouldn't say anything about it and the teacher let it go; I think he's scared of her anyways." replied Andrew with a laugh, followed by Melvin, Darien and Michelle.

Amara didn't find any humor in situation as her gaze was once again locked on the red head. She had the feeling that she needed to worry about the well being of her little sister and she couldn't stop the unsettling feeling that was twisting in the pit of her stomach.

"You alright?" asked Michelle, placing a hand upon the blonde's rigid shoulder.

The blonde immediately relaxed under her touch, turning her gaze upon her best friend and flashing her a smile.

"Yeah…I'm fine. Let's get a game of tag in."

"Yeah!" shouted Andrew in glee.

"But you have to be it first Amara! You're too fast for anyone of us to catch!" pouted Melvin, crossing his arms over his chest and Darien nodding in agreement.

Amara smirked as she began climbing down the jungle gym. "I can't help that I'm fast."

"But you're not just fast…you're like super fast…like…"started Darien, as he trailed off trying to find the right word.

"Like the wind…" whispered Michelle with a small smile.

Darien grinned with a quick nod of the head. "Yeah…like the wind."

"Haha…yea, we can't see you coming or going." stated Melvin.

Amara grinned as she looked up at her friends…she was fast and she knew it, whether by foot or on wheels, she dominated with speed. She really was like the wind…oh yeah…she loved the sound of that.

Jumping down from the jungle gym, the tomboy crossed her arms over her chest and smiled up at her friends with an arrogant smile.

"You got 10seconds before I start coming after you guys."

Her friends all pouted. "That's not enough time!" yelled Andrew, jumping down from the jungle gym.

"Stop complaining and start running! 10…9…"

"Ugh!" yelled Andrew as he suddenly took off through the playground, followed by Darien and Melvin. Michelle jumped off last and instead of running she stepped in front of Amara.

"Are you sure you okay?"

Amara gave Michelle a reassuring smile. "I'm sure." She nodded her head towards the direction the rest of her friends had gone off too. "Go on."

Michelle smiled with relief and took off as fast as she could…she wasn't joking when she said the young

tom boy was like the wind.

When her best friend was out of sight, Amara dropped her smile and turned her gaze back upon Beryl, whom had yet to move from her spot on the bench. Before the day was over with, she was going to find out who Beryl had a fight with. If it was with her sister like this bad feeling was telling her, than Beryl was going to get it; nobody messed with her little sister.

"Ready or not…here I come!" yelled the blonde suddenly, breaking her gaze from Beryl and took off running in the direction she spotted her friends scatter off in.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Elaine stepped out of the room Serena resided in a sighed deeply with a small shake of the head. She stepped away from the door, spotting Amelia stepping out of another room with Lita. She quickened her pace, stopping before the both of them and looked down at Lita and eyed the dark green cast on her right hand.

"Are you okay Lita?" questioned Elaine.

The tall brunette nodded her head with a grin. "I'm fine! I broke my hand in three places!"

Elaine arched at the child's giddiness and was a bit thrown off by it. She turned her gaze upon Amelia and the blue haired woman shrugged her shoulders.

"I don't know." Amelia gave a small laugh. "So how's Serena?"

"Concussion and a few bruised ribs, but she will be okay."

Amelia nodded. "So how about the both of you come to my place; Serena and Lita can sleep while you and I talk."

Elaine nodded in response. "Alright, sounds like a plan. I'm heading to get Serena a wheel chair now. How about you guys go on a head and I will meet you at your place."

"No, I'm going to help you get Serena situated. You're pregnant now and you don't need to over exert yourself."

"Yeah…yeah…" muttered Elaine. "Serena's in room 4 so wait in there while I get the wheel chair."

Amelia nodded, placing a hand upon Lita's back and escorted the child towards the room. Elaine turned in the opposite direction and went to accomplish her task.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Amelia and Lita stepped into the room Serena resided in and they both spotted the blonde laying back on the small hospital bed, an arm draped over her face to block out the lighting in the room and a leg dangling off the side of the bed. Lita immediately made her way to the bed and peered down at her best friend.

"Serena…you okay?"

The small blonde turned to her friend, moving her arm slightly, revealing one of her droopy eyes. "I just want to go to sleep…"

"You and Mrs. Tsukino are coming over."

Amelia nodded as she stepped beside Lita. "Yeah, you can sleep when we get there. Elaine is getting you a wheel chair right now."

Just then, Elaine entered the room with a wheel chair and wheeled it in front of the bed as Amelia and Lita stepped out of the way.

"Okay Serena, I need you to sit up so I can pick you up and put you in this seat."

"You mean I will put her in the seat." replied the blue haired surgeon as she gently pushed Elaine out of the way and got in front of Serena.

Elaine huffed, crossing her arms over her chest. "I can do it!"

"No you can't!" stated Amelia firmly. "You are only in your first trimester and are at high risk for a miscarriage…you shouldn't be lifting anything."

Both Serena and Lita looked at each other momentarily before Serena turned and looked up at Amelia worriedly. "What's a miscarriage?"

Amelia's eyes widened, she had totally disregarded both children being in the room as she went about her rant. She shifted dark blue eyes upon her best friend and gulped at the heated glare that was directed at her.

"Uh…"

Elaine shook her head, wanting to slap her friend up side the back of the head for saying such a thing in front of the kids. She turned her gaze upon Lita and than Serena, seeing both girls staring at her questioningly and with a heavy sigh, Elaine answered the question the best way that she could.

"Um…well…when a woman is pregnant there's a lot of strain on the woman's body while the baby is forming. If the woman doesn't rest and do what she is suppose to do than she can have a miscarriage…that's when…"

Elaine paused as she tried to find the right words to explain the word as delicately as possible. "That's when the baby passes away."

Serena brows knitted together in confusion. "Passes away?"

"You mean it dies!" yelled Lita, her eyes as wide as saucers.

Serena's eyes widened at Lita's words, her eyes welling with tears and a horrified expression plastered upon her face. "It dies?"

Elaine's eyes widened in panic as the situation was going downhill and at a very fast pace. "Yes that will happen…but that's not going to happen to me. I'm taking it easy and resting like I'm supposed to, so don't worry, okay?"

Serena stared back at Elaine skeptically. "You promise?"

Elaine gave her a reassuring smile. "I promise."

Serena stuck out her hand, her pinky outstretched. "You have to pinky promise me."

Elaine's smile broadened as she wrapped her pinky around the smaller one. "I pinky promise."

Serena gave her a watery smile and Amelia took that as her cue to scoop the small blonde off of the bed and settled her down in the seat of the wheel chair.

"Alright, let's get going you guys." replied Amelia as she began wheeling Serena to the door, than yelped as Elaine punched her hard in the arm.

"Yea, let's go. I can call Ken and tell him what's going on." replied Elaine as she grinned.

"Ugh! Wait, I have to pick up Michelle and Amy." Said Amelia.

"No, Ken has to pick up Amara any ways; he can get them too and bring them home."

Amelia nodded at the logic. "Sounds like a plan."

Elaine grinned, pulling out her phone from her purse, gathered her belongings and made her way out of the room as she dialed Ken's number.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Serena stared out of the car window, watching the scenery pass by her quickly. She suddenly sighed, leaning back in her seat and turning her head to look up at Elaine.

"There's something I need to tell you…and ask you."

Elaine arched a brow in surprise. "Uh…okay….what is it?"

"I have a cousin named Mina and she's been living in England for the past two years."

The lavender haired woman's brows knitted together, not understanding where this was going. "Okay?"

"She's back in Tokyo; living in Juuban…she's in my class."

Elaine had to jerk her steering wheel back in place as she just about ran off the road in surprise. "When did this happen?"

"Yesterday…"

"Why didn't you say anything yesterday?"

"I forgot about it after we all talked last night."

Elaine nodded in approval, last night had been rough. "So…what did you want to ask me?"

"Can Uncle Ronnie and Mina come over for dinner one night?"

The nurse nibbled on her bottom lip in thought; she wasn't entire sure about that. Mina she didn't have a problem with, but this Ronnie guy she wasn't was an issue. She didn't know if this guy was anything like Serena and Amara's father. Though, she did note that Serena didn't show any fear when she mentioned him…so he couldn't be a bad person.

"I want to talk to Ken about it first and then we will see."

Serena nodded, satisfied with the answer. She turned away from Elaine and leaned her still throbbing head against the car door and closed her heavy eyes. Within a mattered of seconds the blonde fell into a deep sleep.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Amelia closed Lita's bedroom door and made her way into the living room where she spotted Elaine lounging back on the sofa. The woman smiled, entering the room and took a seat on the love seat, lounging back like her friend.

"It's been a long day."

Elaine laughed. "Yes it has…"

Amelia smiled, lacing her fingers behind her head. "So did you find out what happened with the girls? I didn't get the chance to talk to Lita."

"Yeah…" Elaine frowned at the mere thought of it. "Apparently, Serena went to the bathroom before lunch and Beryl picked a fight with her. The teacher sent Lita to check on Serena since she hadn't come back to class. Serena said that Lita broke up the fight."

Amelia furrowed her brows, an act that went unnoticed by her friend. "Lita broke up the fight?"

"Yep, she saved Serena." Elaine shook her head with a dry chuckle. "Do you believe that little bitch tried to drown Serena in the toilet?"

Amelia gasped, turning her head sharply towards her friend. "Are you serious?"

"Very…Serena said that Lita came in while Beryl was trying to drown her and got the girl off of her."

Amelia nodded, a small frown forming. "So… how did she break her hand?"

"I don't know, Serena did say that Lita had beat Beryl up."

"Must have been pretty brutal for Lita to break her hand…"

"I guess." muttered Elaine as she arched a brow and turned to look at her friend. "What are you getting at?"

Amelia shook her head. "It's nothing."

Elaine sat up and faced Amelia. "No…tell me what's on your mind."

Amelia sighed, running a hand through her disheveled hair and sat up. "Remember when I was telling you that I was thinking that Lita may blow up and hurt somebody…being that she is bottling up all of her feelings. "

Elaine nodded. "Yeah…but what does that have to do with this?"

Amelia sighed, gazing down at the hard wood floor. "She broke her hand by beating the hell out of some girl…she couldn't of been in her right mind to viciously attack someone like that."

The lavender haired woman shook her head with a small laugh. "Come on…tell me you wouldn't flip out if you saw someone trying to drown me in the toilet!"

Amelia rolled her eyes but nodded her head in agreement. "Okay…okay, I'll give you that."

Elaine smiled. "Stop worrying so much…Lita is a good kid."

"I know…Lita is a great kid…but I just can't shake the off the darkness I've seen in her eyes."

Elaine sighed. "Maybe you should talk to Hotaru about it…she may be able to get to the bottom of this."

Amelia shook her head. "I have talked to her about it…Hotaru can't seem to get through to her…at least not right now."

"Just give it some time and keep an eye on her."

Amelia sighed heavily. "That's all I can do…"

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Amara's leg shook in anticipation as she stared up at the clock, watching the second hand move ever so slowly around the face of the clock.

5 more minutes until freedom…

"Stop staring at the clock."

Amara broke her gaze from the clock and turned her head towards Michelle, confusion apparent on her face.

"What?"

"I said stop staring at the clock."

The blonde knitted her brows together with a small frown. "Why?"

Michelle smiled. "Because…the more you stare at it, the longer it seems to take. If you keep your mind on something else, time flies by."

"Psh…" Amara rolled her eyes at the answer, turning her head slightly to make sure the teacher wasn't paying them any attention. Seeing the teacher still at her desk grading papers, Amara shifted her gaze upon her curly haired friend.

"I don't believe that."

"It's true. I remember when I was real little and I was real excited about going to the aquarium with my mom and Ami. I kept staring at the clock , wishing it would go faster so we could go and my Mom told me to stop staring at it and to go practice my violin; time will fly by. I did what she said and before I knew it, it was time to go."

Amara looked at Michelle skeptically. "Whatever."

The bell suddenly sounded, signaling that school was over.

Michelle smirked, picking up her violin case and book bag. "See…told yah!"

The tomboy sucked her teeth and grabbed her book bag and stood from her seat. Slinging the bag on her shoulder, she turned towards her friend, eyeing Michelle's smug grin.

"Alright…I'll give you that one."

Michelle rolled her eyes with a small giggle and began heading towards the front of the room, alongside Amara. "Whatever you say…so do you think the guys know any more about Beryl?"

"I don't know, besides…they leave before we do, so we wouldn't get to see them until tomorrow anyways."

"True…" muttered Michelle as the both of them walked out of the classroom. "Maybe Amy, Lita or Serena know something…they are in the same class as Diamond."

Amara gave a small nod in agreement. "Yeah…maybe."

The duo walked out of the school building and headed towards their usual spot to stand and wait on their ride. Amara arched a brow as they spotted Amy…and only Amy. Quickening her pace, the short haired blonde made her way to the small genius, whom was silently reading over her notes from the day.

"Where's Serena and Lita?"

The bluenette raised her head quickly, slightly startled. "Um…they left early."

"Why?" questioned both Amara and Michelle in unison.

"The both of them got into a fight." replied Amy, closing her note book and placing it back in her book bag.

"With each other?" asked Michelle, completely flabbergasted.

"Nope." said Amy as she adjusted the book bag's straps upon her shoulders. "With Beryl."

"What!" shouted Amara, causing surrounding of students to look upon the trio in surprise. The blonde glared at the onlookers, causing them to scatter off and continue with what they had previously been doing.

"What happened?" questioned Michelle as she slapped at Amara's arm to get her to stop glaring at everyone.

"I don't know, they didn't really say much. Serena went to the bathroom like she always does before lunch and she was gone for a real long time. The teacher sent Lita to go check on her and then a while later, they both returned injured; all Serena said was that it was Beryl."

Amara growled lowly under her breath, becoming enraged. "How bad was it?"

Amy eyed Amara wearily, not really sure if she should let the obviously pissed-off blonde know the full extent of her sister's wellbeing. Chewing on her bottom lip, she decided that she needed to be completely honest.

"She didn't look too good…she kept holding her side. She barely at her lunch and she mostly kept her head on the lunch table, saying that that her stomach was hurt. The only thing I saw on Lita was one of her hands was really swollen and some of her knuckles were bleeding."

A horn honking stopped Amara from asking anymore questions and she turned her head spotting Ken's pick-up truck. He stepped out of the vehicle and walked towards the three with a smile.

"Come on you guys, you two are riding with me." replied Ken, looking upon Amy and Michelle.

Michelle furrowed her brows. "Where's my mom?"

"She's at home taking care of Lita. Elaine and Serena are over there as well and we are all going to go over there."

"What about the go-kart track?"

Ken looked down upon Amara apologetically. "I'm sorry kiddo but we're going have to wait until tomorrow." Ken than sighed at the girl's disappointment and quickly shuffled the girls towards his truck.

"Come on, let's get going."

"Ken…"

Ken closed the back door to his truck after Amy and Michelle climbed in and then turned to look at Amara. "Yes?"

"Is Serena and Lita okay?"

Ken sighed heavily, placing a hand on top of the blonde's head and ruffled her hair. "I don't know…Elaine wouldn't say, she just told me to get there ASAP."

"Oh…okay…let's go then."

Ken smiled. "Alright…let's head out." The duo entered the car and Ken quickly sped off, wanting to know what the hell happened to his little princess. If Diamond had anything to do with this, he was definitely going to pummel that brat!

Author: Wow I had 16 pages going and was still going strong so I decided cut some of I wrote out and am placing it in the next chapter. Anyways! I hope you enjoyed and please review!


	23. B2: Chapter 7

Author: Thanks sooooo much for the reviews you guys ^_^ I really appreciate it and keep them coming! Here's the next installment and I hope you enjoy!

Disclaimer: Don't own SM

Amara stared up at the steadily rising numbers of the elevator as it climbed its way up each floor to make it to its destination. The young blonde was extremely anxious to see her sister; she needed to make sure that her sister was really alright and she as well needed to know what exactly happened between her and Beryl.

Turning her eyes away from the numbers, she shifted gaze up at Ken who was also staring up at the rising numbers of the elevator. She then settled her gaze upon Amy and Michelle, whom were both leaning up against the elevator wall, looking at nothing in particular.

Amara sighed heavily, looking up at the numbers once more to see that they had finally reached the floor and a 'ding' sounded out to confirm the obvious. She was the first one out of the doors and sped walk down the hallway, completely leaving everyone else behind.

Ken escorted Amy and Michelle out of the elevator and looked at Amara's retreating back exasperated.

"Amara! Will you hold on?"

"I have to check on Serena!" exclaimed Amara as she continued on her voyage.

Michelle giggled and shook her head. "She's not going to stop."

Ken rolled his eyes and began walking down the hall with Michelle and Amy on either side of him. "I know…" he soon shook his head as he spotted the blonde already at the door and pounding on it like she was the police. Before he could berate the girl for her impatience, he saw the door being slung open.

Amelia's head poked out of the door, her expression clearly showing her annoyance. Her head lowered and she spotted a determined looking Amara.

The blue haired woman arched a brow. "Must you bang on the door like that?"

Amara nodded and declared, "Yes, I need to see my sister!"

"She's sleeping in Lita's and Amy's room. You shouldn't…" Amelia didn't get to finish as Amara made her way past the woman and was already disappearing into the condo. Shaking her head, the surgeon turned back to the door and looked up at a sheepish looking Ken.

"Sorry…Amara seems to be bent on getting to the bottom of this."

Amelia laughed. "I can see that…" she looked down and smiled at her daughters. "Hey, girls."

"Hi mom!" both Amy and Michelle exclaimed in unison as they enveloped their mother in a hug, then made their way into the condo and quickly darted down the hall and towards Amy's room.

Amelia stepped back from the door way, opening the door wider to allow Ken to finally enter her home. "Elaine's in the living room resting."

Ken nodded in gratitude and quickly made his way into the condo and ventured off to find his wife. Amelia closed the front door and locked it, then made her way to the living room herself.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Amara quickly found the room she was looking for and without hesitation, opened it and entered. She spotted Lita sleeping soundly in her bed and then turned to Amy's bed and spotted her sister sleeping as well. The short haired blonde made her way across the room and stood before the bed and could feel her anger rise as she scrutinized the heavy bruising on her sister's face and jaw line. The poor girl was whimpering in her sleep and had one hand clenched at her side and the other holding the side of her head.

Sitting down beside her sister, Amara turned towards the doorway as she heard Amy and Michelle running down the hall way. They quickly entered the room and Michelle's eyes widened as her gaze fell upon Serena,

"Woah…is she okay?"

"Doesn't look like it." muttered Amara darkly through clenched teeth. She placed a hand on Serena's side and the small blonde gave off a pitiful whimper, causing her sister to snatch her hand back as if she had been burned.

Frowning deeply, she took a hold of the hem of her sister's shirt and pulled it up to see an ace bandage wrapped around Serena's chest tightly. She took a hold of a piece of the bandage wrap and lifted it slightly to see a small portion of blackish purple bruising; Beryl was a goner.

There was no way in hell Amara was going to let this slide; the red head had crossed the line and she was going to get what she deserved.

Michelle slowly licked her lips, unsure of what to do. Amara was on the verge of snapping and the look of barely contained rage upon the blonde's face frightened her. Swallowing deeply, she turned her head to the side to see if Amy was still standing beside her, only find the spot vacant.

Arching a brow in confusion, the aqua haired girl raised her head to see her sister standing in front of Lita's bed, silently eyeing the girl's dark green cast. Michelle really couldn't decipher the expression on her sister's face so she decided to turn her attention back upon Amara, spotting her friend placing a hand on her sister's shoulder and shook it gently.

"Serena…"

The injured blonde groggily blinked her eyes open and settled them upon her sister. "Hn?"

"We need to talk." replied Amara softly but sternly.

"Nuh uh…" muttered Serena, her eyes closing heavily. "Later…"

"No…we're going to talk now." stated Amara. "What happened?"

Serena grumbled something incoherent under her breath before responding. "Beryl attacked me in the bathroom."

"Why?"

Serena cracked her eyes open to look at her sister incredulously. "I don't know! She just punched me in the face!"

"Where was Lita?"

Serena glared at her sister, realizing the girl was in interrogation mode. She was cold and emotionless and only got straight to the point and asked the questions she needed to know before she could process how she should feel and react towards the situation; she hated it. She couldn't stand the coldness in her eyes or the monotone in her voice; it always placed an unsettling feeling in the pit of her stomach.

"I was by myself at first, the teacher sent Lita to the bathroom to check on me because I didn't come back to class. Lita walked in when Beryl was trying to shove my head into the toilet…"

"I told you she does that!" blurted out Michelle before she blushed in embarrassment as the Tenoh girls stared up at her in surprise.

"Sorry…" mumbled Michelle and Serena continued on with the story.

"Yeah…so Lita got her off me and got her down to the ground and start wailing on her…that's how she broke her hand I guess."

Amara slowly nodded her head. "Well…I'm going to stomp Beryl's face into the ground tomorrow and that will be the end of that."

"Amara!" both Serena and Michelle yelled in unison.

The tom boy crossed her arms over her chest defiantly. "She's not going to get away with this."

Serena growled lowly under breath but kept her mouth shut knowing that arguing with her sister was pointless. The tomboy was heated and there was no way of getting through to her so, she made herself comfortable and adjust her pillow.

"Do what you want."

"I will." muttered Amara, looking up to be greeted with Michelle's frown.

"What?"

Just as Michelle was going to retort, her mother called for them to eat. Amara quickly stood and turned to look at her sister.

"Are you coming?"

"No."

Amara frowned. "You need to eat."

"I'm not hungry!" snapped Serena as she pulled the blankets up and over her face.

"You don't have to yell!" snapped back Amara before she turned and stomped her way out of the room. Michelle shook her head with a giggle as Serena was already snoring; these Tenoh girls were really something else.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Ken made his way into the living room and his eyes immediately fell upon his wife whom was lounging lazily back on the sofa with her eyes closed. He had planned on scaring her, though unfortunately as he took a step forward, the floor creaked and Elaine slowly opened her eyes.

A warm smile came upon her face and Ken couldn't help but return the smile and he made his way towards her and took a seat at her side. He placed a hand along the side her face before he began to run his fingers through her curly locks.

"How are you feeling?"

"A little tired."

Ken laughed with a small shake of the head. "You had a rough day." He leaned forward and kissed Elaine tenderly upon her forehead.

"Ew!"

Elaine blushed a deep red as she glared at her friend. "Shut up, Amelia."

The blue haired woman laughed and sat down heavily on the loveseat opposite them. Ken rolled his eyes and readjusted himself in his seat so that Elaine's legs were now draped over his lap.

"So what happened today?"

Amelia decided to explain being that Elaine was too busy yawning loudly. "To make a long story short, it looks like Diamond's older sister attacked Serena in the bathroom. Lita walked into the middle of it and broke the fight up."

Ken frowned deeply, scratching at the back of the head. "Why would she attack Serena…she hasn't done anything to her…has she?"

"No…"replied Elaine. "I think the girl is getting back at Serena for the fight she had with Diamond."

Ken shook his head, becoming annoyed. "This is getting ridiculous! That was months ago!"

Elaine shrugged her shoulders. "I know…maybe she was waiting for the right moment."

"They're kids…" muttered Ken with a frown. "What happened to kids doing normal things…like playing with toys or outside playing tag or thinking up new games; now they're plotting ways to beat the hell out of each other."

Elaine frowned, but was unable to come up with anything to say, so she said the first thing that came to mind.

"I'm hungry."

Ken chuckled. "You're starting to sound like Serena. "

The lavender haired woman glared at her husband. "I am not!"

"You're starting to eat like her." muttered Elaine, causing Ken to bust out in a fit of laughter.

"What the hell are you talking about?" demanded Elaine.

Amelia smirked. "You're starting to inhale food like she does, except you get sick afterwards."

Elaine crossed her arms over her chest with a pout. "I don't know what you're talking about."

Amelia giggled at her friend's posture and expression, standing to her feet. "I'll order some take out."

"Oooh! I want some eggrolls!" Elaine paused and tapped at her chin. "You got any peanut butter?"

Ken and Amelia's faces fell and they stared at the woman in disgust. "Ew." They both replied in unison.

"What? That sounds so good…eggrolls…peanut butter….mmm and some hot sauce!"

Amelia shook her head. "I'm going to go place the order before I lose my appetite."

Elaine huffed as Ken turned towards his wife. "How's Serena…was she hurt?"

"She has a few bruised ribs and a concussion."

Elaine nibbled on her bottom lip as she saw the pure rage burning in her husband's eyes and as quickly as she saw it, the rage was smothered out and Ken turned his gaze away from his wife's eyes.

"What about Lita?"

"She has a broken hand."

Ken shook his head with a heavy sigh. "What are we going to do about this?"

"Nothing."

Ken snapped his head towards his wife, eyes as wide as saucers. "What the hell you mean nothing?"

Elaine sighed, running a hand through her hair. "Serena wants to handle it…she says that if we get involved and get the girl in trouble, than she's only going to keep on tormenting Serena."

"This is bullshit." snapped Ken, frowning deeply.

"I know it is, but I understand what she's saying. She is a lot smarter that I can give her credit for…I think we need stand back and see what happens; if things get worse than we will step in."

"I don't think I like this…Amara is not going to let this fly."

"Exactly."

Ken arched a brow in confusion. "Exactly?"

"Amara needs to put that girl in her place…I'm hoping she can put an end to all of this."

Ken snorted. "Well I hope she knocks that girl's teeth down her throat."

"That isn't nice dear…" admonished Elaine softly.

"Nice is the last thing on my mind. That little brat put her hands on my daughter and something needs to be done about it."

Elaine smiled, despite the seriousness of the conversation. "Your daughter?"

Ken nodded. "Those girls are my daughters, whether they're my flesh and blood or not. I will never love them any less than the child that is growing inside your belly as we speak. I will do them anything in my power to protect them."

"Awwww! My baby is growing up!"

Ken blushed. "Be quiet."

Elaine giggled and pinched her husband's cheek. "I understand how you feel and I feel exactly the same way…but there are just some things we can't protect them from. There are some things that they're going to have to deal with on their own."

Ken sighed heavily. "I know…it just sucks."

"That it does." muttered Elaine. Just then, Amelia stepped into the room; menu and phone in hand.

"Food will be here in about 20mins…shall we set the table?"

Both Tsukinos nodded and stood from the sofa, following their friend into the kitchen.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Lita and Serena decided to skip dinner, which worried Ken the most; Serena never skipped a meal. Elaine attempted to ease his concerns by stating that her medicine was the cause, but the mechanic wasn't convinced.

After dinner he decided to head to Amy's and Lita's room to sit with Serena for a moment as Elaine and Amelia headed towards the living room. Michelle went to her own room with Amara and Amy stayed in the kitchen to study.

Amara flopped herself down on Michelle's bed, propping her head up on her fists as she laid on her stomach. Michelle as well sat on the bed across from her, leaning her back against the head board, crossing her legs and looking down upon the blonde with an arched brow.

"Are you really going to beat Beryl up?"

Amara sighed with a slight frown. "I want too…but since you and Serena will be mad at me if I do, I'm going to try and…eh…talk to her."

Both of Michelle's brows shot up into her hair line in surprise before her expression settled with a small smile. "I wouldn't be mad if you beat up Beryl…I honestly think someone needs to slap the crap out of her. It's just…I don't want you to get in trouble and I know Serena doesn't want you too either. I think you should talk to her though…I mean…I would do the same if it had been Amy or even Lita."

Amara nodded and then looked up at her friend questioningly. "There's something I've been wanting to ask you."

"Okay…what is it?" asked Michelle curiously.

"How come you and Amy have different last names?"

Michelle looked a little taken aback by the questioned but recovered quickly. "We have two different dads."

"Oh…okay. Well…where are they? I haven't seen them around."

Michelle tucked a lock behind her ear before responding. "My dad died before I was born. Mom said that he was a famous musician and that he traveled with an orchestra as a violinist. She said that he had been all over the world and was known as one of the best violinist in the world. When mom was ready to have me, he was in America playing a concert with his orchestra. When he got the call that I was going to be born, he left his concert early and got on the earliest flight to Japan. His plane crashed…he died on my birthday."

Amara's eyes widened and she was at a loss for words. "I'm sorry…"

Michelle shrugged and gave the blonde a reassuring smile. "It's alright. I can't really miss a person I never met…I just wish that I got to meet him, mom says he was a really good person."

Amara decided to move on from the conversation with another question. "So…what about Amy's dad?"

Michelle looked thoughtful for a moment, tapping a finger against her chin. "I really don't know. I can barely remember what he looked like; I just remember that there was a guy that used to live with us before we moved here. Not too long after he had moved in, Mom was pregnant…than Amy came along. I think I was about four when I never saw him again. "

The tomboy arched her brows at this. "He just…left?"

"I don't know…every time I ask my mom about it, she gets mad and tells me to go to my room or starts talking about something else; I finally stopped asking."

"That's weird…must have been bad."

"I think it was because Amy has Mom's last name…and I have my Dad's last name."

"Amy doesn't know anything?"

"Amy is scared to ask."

"You think your mom will ever tell you?"

"Yeah…one day. Mom usually tells us everything so…there must be a good reason for her to not tell us."

Amara was about to respond when they heard a knock on the door before it opened and Elaine poked her head in the room.

"Come on Amara, it's time to go."

"Alright." Amara stood from the bed and turned to Michelle. "I'll see you tomorrow."

Michelle grinned. "Okay, bye Amara."

"Bye." replied the blonde before she walked out the room.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

The ride home was held in silence and Elaine looked in the rear view mirror, spotting Amara draping a protective arm around her little sister's shoulders and was absentmindedly staring out of the window. Serena was sleeping soundly and the foster mother couldn't help but glare into the mirror as her eyes scanned over the bruises littering Serena's face. She snapped her eyes onto the road once more, shaking off the anger that was beginning to rise; there was no point in getting angry all over again.

She turned her car down her block and she smiled when she saw her husband standing beside his truck in the driveway. Pulling her car up beside his vehicle, she quickly climbed out as Ken made his way to the back seat so he could retrieve the small blonde that was sleeping heavily in the back seat.

He tossed his keys to Elaine so she could go ahead and unlock the door and go inside. Amara stifled a yawn and helped Ken get a hold of her sister before she too climbed out of the car and followed after Elaine.

Ken closed the car door and totted Serena into the house and brought the blonde straight to her room where he laid her down, taking off her jacket, socks and shoes before tucking her into bed. He made sure to turn on her trusty night light and then exited the room. He took a few startled steps back as Amara ran past him already clad in her PJs and hoped into the bed with her sister.

Ken shook his head and called out a goodnight before closing the door silently behind him. He only had one thing on his mind and that was to crawl into bed with his wife and get some much needed shut eye.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Serena rolled over as she felt her bed shift as her sister climbed into the bed with her. She blearily opened her eyes and looked upon her sister as the blonde made herself comfortable.

"Promise me you won't do anything to Beryl."

Amara snorted. "I can't promise you that." The upperclassmen turned her gaze upon her sister. "I will try not to fight her…but I am going to talk to her. If she crosses the line…then I'm going to knock her out."

Serena sighed but nodded. "Fine." The young blonde stifled a yawn. "I told Elaine about Mina today…I asked if Mina and Uncle Ronnie can come over for dinner one night."

"What did she say?"

"Nothing really; just that she wanted to talk to Ken about it."

"You think they will?"

"Probably…" the blonde paused and frowned slightly. "We have problem too."

Amara arched a brow curiously. "What kind of a problem?"

"Its about Elaine…Ms. Mizuno and her were arguing and Ms. Mizuno said if Elaine doesn't take it easy that she will…uh…what was it again…oh yea, have a miscarry."

"What's a miscarry?"

"It means the baby will die!"

"What!" yelped Amara in shock.

"Uh huh! Ms. Mizuno said Elaine has to rest and can't pick up heavy stuff."

Amara frowned with worry. "Well she won't be picking up anything and all she's going to do is sleep!" declared the short haired blonde.

Serena nodded in agreement. "We have to make sure that baby is born!"

Author: Well I hoped you enjoyed ^_^ please review and tell me what you think! Just to let you know, I'm already brainstorming really hard on the next chapter…I think I'm going to kick the story up another notch with some more drama thrown into the mix; wish me luck!


	24. B2: Chapter 8

Author: Thanks so much for the reviews! They really made my day and I was so anxious to get this next chapter out ^_^ Like I said, I wanted to tweak the story up with some drama, so I hope you enjoy!

Disclaimer: Don't own Sm

Elaine hummed softly as she was making Serena and herself some breakfast. Ken had already left for work and Amara had gone off to school. She smiled; she wanted to spend some quality time with Serena so she planned on going shopping…maybe buy a few things for the baby.

She placed the food on both plates, tossing the dirty dishes in the sink. She placed the plates on the table, than retrieved two glasses and poured orange juice in both. Once done she placed the juice back in the refrigerator and placed the glasses on the table.

Elaine turned to the door way and jumped startled as she spotted Serena standing in the entryway of the kitchen, rubbing the sleep from her eyes.

"I wish you and your sister wouldn't do that." muttered Elaine as she tried to steady her rapid heartbeat.

"Sorry…" mumbled Serena as her eyes feel upon the food on the table and her stomach began to grumble in hunger.

Elaine giggled with a shake of the head. "Looks like your appetite is back."

The small blonde grinned as she slowly made her way to the table. She slid into her seat, holding her side and wincing in pain, causing Elaine to look upon her in pity.

"You should be feeling much better in a few days."

"Ugh…a few days?" Serena was appalled, she wasn't sure if she could take this pain for another minute!

Elaine nodded with a sad smile. "Mmhmm."

Serena pouted, picking up her fork. "This is going to be the worst few days of my life!"

The lavender haired woman shook her head with a small laugh. "No it won't and besides, I planned a little shopping trip for the two of us."

A grin made its way across the blonde's face. "Oh! Really?"

"Yes, now eat so you can take your medicine and then we can get ready to go."

"Okay!" exclaimed Serena in excitement as she began to wolf down her scrambled eggs. Elaine giggled as she too dug into her own breakfast.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Wallace blearily opened his eyes; a hand running down his face as the sun just about blinded him. He looked around himself in confusion before he realized that he was still in his truck. He looked through his windshield still able to see the Tsukinos' home even though his vehicle was parked several houses down.

"What the hell?" he muttered sluggishly. He grabbed a hold of his keys that were still in the ignition, as pain shot up through his arm. Looking down at the appendage, he frowned as he spotted a belt wrapped tight around his upper arm and a syringe sticking out of his nearly blue flesh.

With a growl, he jerked the syringe from his arm and he un-wrapped the belt, tossing it in the passenger seat as moved his fingers in an attempt to get the blood flowing once more. He jerked his head up upon seeing movement from the corner of his eye and he spotted Elaine and Serena exiting their home.

Wallace narrowed his eyes upon his daughter, grimacing at the wide smile upon the girl's face as she excitedly made her way into her foster mother's car.

"Hn…where the hell are they going?" questioned the grungy strung out man to himself as he watched the vehicle backing out of the driveway and heading down the street in the opposite direction of where he sat watching intently.

Wallace started up his car and shifted it into gear, pulling his truck out of its parking spot. With a grin he began to follow the car from a safe distance.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Serena grinned happy as she clutched a hold of Elaine's hand, the both of them walking down the aisle, eyeing baby clothes. The small blonde suddenly frowned, eyes scanning the store slowly around her…for some reason she felt like she was being watched.

Elaine arched a brow as she spotted the expression on the girl's face as the child cautiously looked around her.

"What's wrong?"

Serena snapped her head towards her foster mother, giving her a reassuring smile. "Nothing…" she suddenly looked at the baby clothing on the rack before her, arching a brow questioningly.

"How can we pick out clothes for the baby if we don't know what it is?"

Elaine smiled, picking up a light green onesie. "We have to pick out neutral colors. "

Serena's nose wrinkled up in confusion. "Neutral colors?"

"Yep, like green or yellow…colors that boys and girls can wear."

The blonde nodded in understanding. "So…what do you want the baby to be?"

Elaine looked at the clothes thoughtfully. "Well I did want a girl…but being that I already have two, I wouldn't mind having a boy."

Serena's face fell into a pitiful pout. "A boy!"

The lavender haired woman nodded, confused by the child's response. "Yes a boy…don't you? I mean, you already have a sister."

The small blonde rolled her eyes. "Amara isn't girly…she's like my big brother. I want someone to play Barbie dolls with and share clothes and stuff…Amara wouldn't be caught dead in a dress and she only plays with my dolls when her G.I. Joes need a girlfriend."

Elaine couldn't stop the laugh that escaped and she tried to stifle her giggles by placing a hand over her mouth. "I understand where you're coming from." Elaine smiled picking up a pack of infant socks, cooing at how little and adorable they were. "Having a boy or girl doesn't really matter to me; I will still love it regardless."

Serena grinned up at her foster mother's declaration, turning to look in the direction where she knew the toys were at. "Can I go and look at some of the toys?"

Elaine raised her head to look towards the toy aisle which was a ways away, but not too far. The woman nodded, looking down at the small blonde.

"Sure, you can look at some of the toys the baby may like. When I'm done looking through this rack, I will come and get you."

Serena formed a 1000watt grin and quickly bounded off, causing Elaine to shake her head with a small smile.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Serena grinned as she poked at a tickle me Elmo's belly and the doll began to giggle and vibrate within its box. (Author: OMG my son has one of those and it drives me crazy, you just don't know how many times I've busted my ass tripping over that thing and its sooooo loud! But…he loves that evil doll.) She glanced through some of the toys as her eyes caught a hold of Barbie's new princess palace set.

"Oh my God!" she exclaimed, as she looked over the accessories that came with the palace. "This is what my Barbie is missing!"

The small blonde suddenly let out a startled yelp as she was grabbed roughly by the arm and was abruptly jerked around. Her eyes widened in pure horror, complexion turning as pale as a ghost as she stared up into the piercing green eyes of her father.

Wallace smirked, tightening her grip around his daughter's arm, finding it highly amusing when the blonde winced in pain.

"Long time no see…"

Serena couldn't believe her eyes and could feel her throat tightening up and the tears welling. "No…y-you're suppose to be dead…"

Wallace's smirk broadened, causing his daughter to tremble in fear. "You would like that wouldn't you?" Wallace's grip tightened making Serena whimper, drawing the child closer to him. "Do you know what kind of shit you got me into, you fucking bitch!"

Despite her fear, Serena couldn't help but look at her father defiantly. "You deserve it!"

Wallace's eyes widened in outrage and before he knew it, he drew his hand back and struck the girl across the face.

"How dare you disrespect me!" he nearly yelled, eyes looking around him wildly to make sure that no one was watching them.

Serena held back her tears as she felt the blood trailing down the corner of her mouth. She refused to give her father the satisfaction of seeing her cry and swallowed the lump that formed in her throat as she tried to jerk her arms from his steel like grip.

Wallace laughed at the child's futile efforts to escape him and slammed her against the rack filled with toys, causing several Barbie dolls to hit the floor.

"Where the fuck do you think you're going? You're coming home with me!"

Serena's eyes widened as she felt panic creeping its way inside her heart once more and she done the only thing she could think of; she released the most eardrum shattering scream erupt from her mouth.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Elaine giggled as she picked up a white onesie that stated, 'If it stinks then change it!' written across it

"Ooh! I have to get this one!"

The lavender haired woman suddenly jumped as heard the loudest scream she ever heard in her life. The startled woman looked around her wildly trying to figure out what was going on. She suddenly saw a herd of people running in the direction of the toy section and the pregnant woman felt fear grip her heart.

"Serena…"

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Wallace clamped his hand over Serena's mouth, completely taken aback by the scream. "Shut the fuck up!" he exclaimed in slight panic. Serena viciously shook her hand and clamped her teeth down on her father's hand, causing the man to holler at the unexpected pain. He snatched his hand back and clenched it into a tight fist, ready strike his daughter once more; though he was stopped as he heard a yell.

"Hey!"

Wallace snapped his head towards an older woman as she glared at the man whom still had Serena pressed up again the toy shelf.

"What are you doing to that child?" yelled the woman, grabbing her purse and stalking her way up to the man.

"Back off lady, this doesn't concern you!" snapped Wallace.

The woman frowned at the response and her eyes widened as she spotted the blood trailing from the little girl's mouth. The woman glared at the man, clenching the strap to her purse and before Wallace could react, the purse struck hard him across the face.

Wallace immediate released his hold on his daughter and grabbed at his face, stumbling back in surprise, only for purse to strike him again.

"You nasty pedophile! You leave that little girl alone!" she screamed, continuing to beat on the man with her purse.

Serena's eyes widened as she saw a herd of purse wielding women coming to aid the woman as they heard the word 'pedophile' and began to relentlessly beat the man with their purses too. Serena took this opportunity to escape and bolted out of the aisle.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Elaine was trying her damndest to push through the crowd of people that were blocking her from getting any closer to the toy aisle. She could feel panic seeping though her veins, terrified that something was wrong with Serena.

She growled in frustration as she tried to find another way to get through the crowd, only to take a couple unsteady steps back as she felt some one latch themselves upon her. Elaine's eyes widened as she realized that it was Serena whom was latched upon her and was currently squeezing the life out of her.

Elaine untangled the blonde's hands from around her waist and squatted down at eye level with the child, only for her eyes to widen in shock as she wiped the blood from the girl's chin with the back of her hand.

"Oh my God, what happened?"

Serena's eyes were wild and filled with tears. "I want to go!"

Elaine placed her hands on the blonde's shoulders, "Jesus, you're trembling."

Serena couldn't stop the tears that were rolling down her pale face, and she choked back on a sob. "Can we please leave?"

Elaine nodded dumbly, at a loss for words. She quickly took a hold of the child's handing, escorting her out of the store; baby clothes forgotten.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Amara glared at Beryl from across the playground, watching as the red haired girl talked rather animatedly with one of her very few friends. They were by the globe jungle gym and the blonde scanned her eyes throughout the entire play ground quickly, making sure that none of the teachers were watching.

Amara's friends had already run off to go play their normal game of tag as the blonde declined to play and stood watching Beryl, waiting for the right moment to approach the girl. Seeing that the coast was clear, she made her way across the playground; apparently Beryl's friend spotted the blonde and brought it to red head's attention.

Beryl turned towards the blonde stalking across the playground and she rolled her eyes with a frown. "Go save me a swing…I'll be over their in a minute."

The girl nodded and ran off just as Amara stepped behind Beryl. The red head was taken by surprise when the blonde rammed her into the jungle gym and as Beryl turned around she soon found her back being pressed up against the jungle gym and Amara holding her by the back by the collar of her shirt. She looked up into the blonde's eyes and involuntarily shivered at the coldness she saw in them.

"You keep your hands off of my sister!" threatened Amara, ramming Beryl into the jungle gym for emphasis.

Beryl pushed the blonde off of her and readjusted her shirt. "What are you going to do about it?"

Amara clenched her fists wanting to sock the girl in the mouth, but refrained from any form of violence and settled upon glaring at the girl.

"Look, I'm warning you…touch my sister again and I will hurt you."

Beryl grinned, crossing her arms over her chest smugly. "Oh really…you threatening me?"

"No…that's a promise and I never break a promise."

"Ooooh! I'm shaking in my boots."

Amara frowned, finding it extremely hard to contain her anger. "You must really want me to knock your teeth down your throat, huh?"

Beryl smirked, running her fingers through her blazing red hair. "Look…you tell your sister to keep away from my man!"

Amara's brows shot up in surprise. "What?"

The red head rolled her eyes, placing her hands on her hips. "Keep her away from Darien!"

"Darien…" Amara frowned. "I'm not going to do that…they're friends."

Beryl growled possessively. "He's mine!"

The short haired blonde eyes widened at a loss for words. She suddenly dug her hands into the pockets of her slacks and walked away without a word, leaving Beryl standing alone with clenched fists. She spotted Michelle, dodging from being caught by Darien and took off running in the blonde's direction.

The curly haired girl grinned as she made her way over to her friend. "So…did you talk to her?"

"Yep…" muttered Amara nonchalantly.

"So! What happened?"

"She's crazy."

Michelle's face fell. "Well…duh!"

The tomboy shook her head. "No…I mean that girl is really crazy! She thinks Darien is hers…that's why she attacked Serena. She doesn't want them to be friends."

"What!" exclaimed Michelle with wide eyes.

"What's going on you guys?" questioned Darien as he jogged his way up to the pair.

"Looks like I know why Beryl attacked Serena…" replied Amara.

Darien frowned slightly, still pretty upset about founding what had really happened yesterday with Beryl and his bubbly blonde friend.

"Why?"

"Beryl doesn't want Serena to hang around you…or talk to you."

Darien's frowned deepened. "Serena's my friend…and I will talk to whoever I want!" snapped the boy as he turned a hard gaze towards Beryl as she swung on the swings with her friend. "I'm going to go and talk to her."

Michelle shook her head. "I don't think that's a good idea."

"Why? I'm not going to let that girl tell me who I can be friends with."

Michelle sighed, "I think that's only going to make things worse on Serena."

"So what am I suppose to do? I'm not going to stop talking to Serena."

"Then don't" replied Amara. "If she touches my sister again, I will handle it."

Darien ran his fingers through his ebony locks glaring at Beryl through his bangs. "There is something really wrong with that girl."

"You have no idea." muttered Michelle, looking up as she spotted Melvin and Andrew running up to them. "Hey we can talk about this later, lets finish playing before recess is over."

"Good idea." replied Amara, as Andrew ran up on her and slugged her in the arm.

"Tag! You're it!" exclaimed the boy before he took off running. Amara eyes widened as her friend's began to slowly backing up, fully aware of the girl's speed.

"Ugh! You're going to pay for that!" yelled Amara as she suddenly darted off after her hysterically laughing friend.

Author: DUNN DUNN DUNN! Hope you guys enjoyed. I pretty much rushed this chapter out, I'm suppose to being moving this weekend and I have no idea when I'll be able to get another chapter out, so I wanted to post before everything gets a bit hectic in my life lol! Anyways! Please review and let me know what you guys think ^_^ I'm so stoked I'm nearing 300 reviews!


	25. B2: Chapter 9

Author: Thanks so much for the reviews! I really appreciate it ^_^ getting really close to that 300 mark! Anyways, here's the next installment to Runaways; I hope you enjoy!

Disclaimer: Don't own Sm.

Elaine nibbled on her bottom lip, casting worried glances upon Serena whom was eerily quiet and stared blankly ahead of her. Right after the whole incident in the store, she and Serena had quickly made their way to the car and began to head home immediately. The small blonde hadn't spoken a word at all and it was taking the lavender haired woman everything she had to not start hounding the child with questions about what had happened.

Seeing the small blonde's trembling form and ghastly pale face, Elaine knew that what had happened was very traumatic. The foster mother sighed heavily as she furrowed her brows, tears welling in her eyes. This wouldn't have happened if she had kept Serena at her side…how could she have been so stupid to let the child go off on her own…especially knowing that her father was somewhere out there.

Elaine gasped loudly and suddenly stomped on the breaks in the middle of the road. She ignored the loud car horn beeping as the angry driver that nearly rear ended her began yelling as they drove around her vehicle. The lavender haired woman shifted her gaze upon Serena as the girl stared at her with wide terrified eyes, her expression clearly reading 'What the fuck?'

The nurse slowly licked her suddenly dry lips. "What happened in the store?"

Serena frowned, turning her attention upon the angry drivers who held no shame as they flicked them off as they drove pass.

"Don't pay them any mind, answer my question." replied Elaine.

"But we're in the way…and they're really mad!" exclaimed the blonde.

"They'll get over it; now tell me what happened in the store."

Serena nervously chewed on her bottom lip…a part of her was telling her to tell Elaine everything…but another part of her was telling her to keep her mouth shut. The blonde clenched her jaw, wishing that her older sister was there; Amara would have been able to tell her what to do.

The second grader sighed, glancing down at her lap. "I don't want to talk about it."

Elaine clenched the steering wheel in frustration; she just had to know what went down today. "Serena…I really need to know what happened."

Serena shook her head. "I don't want to talk about it!"

Elaine gritted her teeth, becoming a tad bit angry. "Stop playing games and tell me what happened!"

The small blonde's bottom lip puckered out and began to quiver as tears began to flood her eyes; the girl was feeling overwhelmed on what to do. Elaine's anger quickly vanished at seeing the girl's tears and sighed heavily, turning her gaze towards the windshield.

"Fine…we I'll talk about this later." muttered the woman as she looked around her to make sure it was safe to start driving again. Serena nodded slowly before leaning her head against the passenger side window and stared unseeingly out of the window, lost in thought.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Wallace yelled in distress as he was being merciless stomped and beat repeated with purses by angry women. He could clearly hear them screaming and cursing him for being a 'disgusting pedophile' as he was curled up pitifully on the cold tiled floor. Unable to do anything but defend himself, the man began to desperately scan the area, hoping to find a way to escape.

There…

There was a slight opening through the mob of legs to the side of him; if he acted fast, he could weasel his way through and escape to his freedom. He looked up at his attackers, seeing that the people were angrily, yet blindly beating on him. Taking the perfect opportunity, the ex-drug lord dragged himself through the small opening and pushed his way through the crowd.

He finally slipped through the opening and stumbled to his feet, quickly eyeing the crowd that was oblivious to the fact that he was no longer there. Smirking in satisfaction, Wallace made a hasty retreat from the packed aisle and headed towards the exit. He was glad that no one paid him any mind as they ran past him to see what was going on; the store's security finally making their presence known and was attempting to calm the crowd down and handle the situation quickly professionally.

Wallace exited the store's double automatic glass doors and made his way across the parking lot. He suddenly threw his head up as he heard police sirens and turned his head towards the door as he saw several police vehicles pull up in front of the store. The blonde haired man scowled as his eyes fell up A.J. Furuhata exiting his police cruiser and quickly ran inside the building.

Once the police officer was gone, Wallace continued on his path to his vehicle and quickly entered, starting his car and pulling out of his parking space. Retreating from the store's grounds quickly, the grungy man sighed heavily, running a shaking hand through his disheveled locks. He glanced up at his rear view mirror, catching sight of Gucci symbol welts stamped on his fore head and on the side of his face; he just got the hell beat of him by some high class women.

Growling in anger, the man slammed his fist against his steering wheel and glared at nothing in front of him as he drove. The whole outcome of the situation finally fell upon him as he realized that he had really fucked up. Not only did he not get his daughter, but he was seen by many people and was know identifiable. The police will soon find out who he is, especially if that little brat snitches…

Wallace clenched his jaws tightly…he needed to stay low for a while. He had to let this whole situation simmer down before he could make his next move. The ex-drug lord grinned at the thought…this was far from over and those girls will be his again and they were going to pay dearly.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Elaine paced her living room, running her fingers though her hair. As soon as they got home, Serena went straight upstairs and directly into her room, not saying a word since their conversation in the car. The lavender haired woman wasn't sure what to do, the child didn't want to talk and she couldn't shake the feeling that some how the girl's father was involved.

She felt the dire need to call Setsuna and let her know of what had happened but the problem was…she didn't actually know what the hell had happened! She didn't want to stir up anything when she didn't know all of the facts…Serena's father may have not been involved at all!

Elaine growled in frustration and began to nibble on her fingernails in distress. She suddenly made her way across the living room, digging out her cell phone from her purse. Flipping the lid on the device, she quickly punched in her husband's cell number…she needed someone to talk to and who is better than her lifelong companion!

She waited impatiently for her husband to pick up the phone and suddenly smiled with relief when he finally picked up.

"**Hello?"**

"Hey honey."

"**Hey Babe! What's up?"**

Elaine chewed on her bottom lip, trying to figure out how to bring up the topic at hand. "Um…well…we have a problem."

There was a moment of silence before Ken finally responded. **"What's wrong?"**

Elaine sat heavily on the couch and propped her feet up on the coffee table. "I decided to take Serena shopping with me and while we were there I let her go off to the toy section while I was looking at baby stuff. Next thing I know I hear a scream and a bunch of people running over to the toy section where Serena had gone off too. I got scared and ran over to see what had happened, but there was so many people crowding the aisle I couldn't get through. All of a sudden Serena throws herself at me and she is terrified out of her mind and her mouth was bleeding." Elaine's voice began to crack as her eyes began to fill with tears. "She was literally shaking, she was so afraid…"

"**What happened?"** questioned Ken, worry evident in his voice.

"I don't know!" cried Elaine in frustration. "She refused to talk about it." Elaine went quiet for a moment lost in thought. "For some reason…I think it has something to do with her father."

Ken gasped on the other end of the phone and Elaine could picture her husband's eyes as wide as saucers. "Why would you think that Elaine? That's a serious accusation!"

The lavender haired woman sighed heavily. "I know it is…but Ken if you could of seen the look on Serena's face…see the fear she held in her eyes. We know what both Amara and Serena had gone through while they were living with him…that man is the only thing I can think of that could put Serena in this state; I mean the girl has barely spoken a word since we left the store."

"Have you called Setsuna?"

"No…I didn't want to talk to her until we find out what had actually happened at the store."

"Okay…well I'm coming home so we can get to the bottom of this."

Elaine frowned slightly, shaking her head in disapproval. "No, don't do that. Just stay at work and pick up Amara after school."

"Why would I do that Elaine, I need to come home so we can talk to Serena. "

"I don't think Serena is going to talk until she talks to Amara first. You know how those two are…they don't do anything until they talk to each other first."

Ken sighed heavily. "So very true…okay well I'm going to get back to work, please call me if Serena tells you anything."

"Of course." whispered Elaine.

"Love you!"

Elaine giggled in the sing-song way her husband had declared his love. "I love you too, I'll see you soon."

"Alright, bye!"

Elaine hung up the phone with a small smile, standing to her feet and heading to the kitchen. She needed to focus her mind on something else and decided she could start on lunch for herself and Serena. Then she could do some light cleaning and decide on what she was going to make for dinner.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Ken ran a hand through his short brown locks as he heard his car door open and from the corner of his eye he saw Amara climbing into the vehicle. The tomboy grinned up at him and gave him a short wave.

"Hey."

"Hey." replied Ken as he began driving. Amara frowned slightly, seeing that she was heading straight home and not heading towards the go-kart track.

"Why are we going home?"

"Something happened today!"

The blonde snapped her head towards her foster father questioningly. "Like what?"

Ken sighed. "Something happened with Serena today when she went to the store with Elaine."

Worry made its way upon the child's face. "Is she okay? What happened?"

"I don't know what happened, Elaine wasn't with her and Serena doesn't want to talk about it."

Amara frowned deeply, looking at the man skeptically. "Where was Elaine at?"

The mechanic narrowed his eyes upon the tomboy with a slight frown. "She was shopping and let Serena go look at some toys…that's when everything happened."

Amara nodded, pleased with the answer. She turned towards the passenger window deciding that she was done talking. The only thing she wanted to do was talk to her sister and find out what was going on. Seeing that Amara was going to say anything else, Ken turned up the music and stayed silent the whole ride home.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Pulling up into the driveway, Amara quickly exited the truck and made her way into the house. She bolted through the front door and scanned the living room, not seeing Serena in sight. Elaine poked her head out of the entryway of the kitchen, her gaze falling upon the tomboy.

"She's in her room."

Amara nodded, throwing her book bag and jacket on the couch before she bounded upstairs and straight to her sister's room. Not bothering to knock, the blonde threw the door open, startling her little sister as the girl had been lying on her bed.

"Geeze Amara!" yelled Serena with wide eyes.

Amara didn't say anything and stalked her way across the room and towards Serena. "What happened today?"

"Well hi, how are you doing today?" muttered Serena sarcastically as she sat up on the bed with her legs hanging over its edge.

"Cut the crap and tell me what's going on!"

Serena glared at her sister before settling her eyes on the floor. "I saw Daddy."

Amara froze as she felt her heart a skip a beat in her chest. "You what?"

"Elaine and I went to the store to look at some stuff for the baby. I asked if I could go and look at some toys and she said that I could and that she would be over there when she was done looking at clothes. I went to look at the toys and I felt some one grab my arm and it was Dad!"

Amara swallowed deeply, completely dumbfounded by what her sister had said. "Are you sure it was him? He's dead Serena."

"Of course I'm sure it was him and he's definitely alive! He even smacked me! Ghosts don't smack people!"

The tomboy shakily ran a hand through her bangs. "How did he find you?"

Serena sighed and threw her hands up exasperated. "I don't know…he was the last person I thought I would see…especially in a baby store."

Amara frowned. "He must have followed you from somewhere."

"We left straight from here Amara!" Serena's eyes suddenly widened. "You think he knows where we live?"

"I don't know…how can he know where we are? How is he even alive?"

Serena covered her face with her hands and shook her head. "We need to tell Ken and Elaine."

"NO!" yelled Amara, causing her sister to jump startled.

"We have too!"

"No we don't! They don't need to know anything!"

"Daddy knows where we live! We have to tell them…we need to start talking!"

"We don't know that! We're not going to say anything!"

Serena jumped up from her seat on the bed with clenched fists. "He almost had me Amara! What would of happened if I hadn't got away?"

Amara felt tears come to her eyes at the thought and she glared angrily at the ground. "We can't tell them."

"Why?"

The tomboy drew in a shaky breath. "We can't bring more people into this mess…"

Serena turned away from her sister, taking a seat on the bed. "Amara…we can't do this alone. We need help. We…we have to tell them, the Tsukinos can protect us…even Setsuna."

"Nobody can protect us from Dad…he'll hurt them too." whispered Amara.

"We don't know that."

"He hurt mom didn't he? He hurt us too! You know he will!"

Serena sighed, knowing that her sister was right…but she wasn't going to back down. "If you don't want to say anything, then don't! I'm tired of being scared all the time…I'm tired of running…now I'm not going to be able to sleep at night cause I'm going to be scared that Daddy is going to show up. "Serena shook her head with a small frown. "I'm sick of lying about everything…it hurts holding everything inside all the time."

The small blonde stood from the bed and headed towards the door. She paused in the doorway, her back turned towards her sister.

"I'm going to tell them what happened." The small blonde didn't give her older sister time to say anything as she made her way out of the room and down the stairs.

-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-

Serena stepped off the last step and made her way in the kitchen where she spotted Elaine and Ken talking quietly amongst themselves. The child cleared her throat, affectively gaining her foster parent's attention.

"I-I'm ready to talk now."

Both Ken and Elaine nodded and they moved towards the kitchen table, taking a seat.

"Alright, take a seat Serena." replied Elaine; the blonde nodded, taking a seat at the table.

"So… what happened?" questioned Ken anxiously.

Serena turned her gaze towards her fingers that were drumming softly on top of the table. "I saw my Dad at the store."

"What!" exclaimed both Ken and Elaine in unison. Ken abruptly stood from his seat and began to pace the kitchen.

"I was looking at the toys and I felt someone grab my arm." started Serena as she slowly licked her lips. "They turned me around and it was my Dad; he slapped me and was trying to take me with him and that's when I screamed."

Elaine's eyes widened and began to fill with tears. "That was you I heard."

Serena nodded. "Some woman saw us and told him to leave me alone. When he didn't she smacked him with her purse. That's when he let me go and I crawled away as a whole bunch of women ran over to hit my dad with their purses; that's when I found you." finished Serena as her gaze fell upon Elaine.

Elaine took in a deep breath, letting the information sink in slowly. Exhaling, she looked at the small blonde in front of her, deciding what the next step would be.

"Serena, go upstairs. I'll get you when dinner is ready."

The small blonde nodded and quietly left the kitchen as Elaine stood to her feet, grabbing her phone from the counter.

"I need to call Setsuna."

Ken raked his fingers through his hair. "How the hell did he find her?"

"I don't know." whispered Elaine, dreading that her assumption was correct. Her attention was suddenly drawn to the phone as she heard Setsuna's voice.

"Hey Setsuna, its Elaine."

"**Oh hi Elaine, what can I do for you?"**

"Um we have a bit of a problem."

"**A problem?" **questioned Setsuna worriedly.

"Yeah…Serena had an encounter with her father today."

"**WHAT!"** screeched the social worker in complete shock.

"Yeah…Serena is pretty shaken up about it."

"**Alright hold on, I'm on my way."**

"Alright, I will see you soon." Elaine placed her phone down and looked over towards her husband who looked to be on the verge of a mental break down.

"Setsuna is on her way."

Ken sighed in relief. "Good."

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Setsuna hung up the phone just as Hotaru made her way into the room. "Who was that on the phone, Hun?"

"It was Elaine, I have to go over there."

Hotaru furrowed her brows, placing a tray of tea down on the coffee table. "Is something wrong?"

"Very wrong!" exclaimed Setsuna as she began gathering her belongings.

"Well, what is it?" questioned the raven haired woman as she stared at her frantically moving girlfriend.

"Serena had an encounter with her father!"

Hotaru's eyes nearly bulged from her head. "SHE WHAT!" The violet eyed woman shook her head incredulously. "How the hell did he find her?"

"I have no idea. I'm heading over there now to get to the bottom of this…can you please call A.J. and have him meet me at the Tsukinos?"

"Of course!" replied Hotaru.

"Thanks." said Setsuna as she quickly leaned in to give her lover a kiss and advanced to the door. "I'll be home soon."

"Be careful." called out Hotaru as she watched her girlfriend grab her car keys and walk out the door. Once she was gone, Hotaru grabbed the phone to call A.J.

Author: That's all for now, please review and tell me what you think ^_^


	26. B2: Chapter 10

Author: Soooo sorry for the wait, had some serious computer problems. I somewhat got it situated, but as far as I can tell I'm going to have to get a new computer soon! N E ways, thought pretty long and hard on what I wanted to do this with this chapter, so here is what I've come up with. ^_^ Hope you enjoy!

Disclaimer: Don't own SM

Serena walked upstairs and went into her room where she spotted her sister sitting on her bed and twiddling her thumbs as she stared blankly at the floor. The short haired blonde raised her head as she heard the bedroom close and stared at her sister with an unreadable expression upon her face.

"You tell them?"

Serena slowly nodded. "Yes."

Amara broke her gaze from Serena with a sigh. "What did they say?"

"Nothing really." Serena walked across the room and sat down beside her sister. "They just asked what happened and they seemed to be really upset about it. Ken started pacing the kitchen and Elaine looked like she was about to cry. When I was done, Elaine told me to go to upstairs…"

Amara frowned slightly. "What do you think they're going to do?"

Serena shrugged her shoulders, lying back on her bed. "I don't know…whatever it is; I hope it keeps Dad away from us."

"I guess we will have to wait and see…" muttered Amara darkly.

"Yeah…" muttered Serena before turning her head towards her bedroom window when she heard something outside. Making her way to the window, she pushed the blinds back, arching a brow as she spotted both Setsuna's and A.J's vehicles in their driveway.

"What is Setsuna and Andrew's dad doing here?" questioned the small blonde.

Amara shook her head, lying back heavily on the bed and staring unseeingly upon the ceiling. "Probably here to talk to Elaine and Ken about what happened today…probably going to talk to you too."

"Me?" squeaked Serena as her eyes widened abnormally large.

Amara nodded . "Yep, they're going to want to talk to you because you're the one that saw Dad."

The small blonde frowned slightly, eyes turning back towards the window, watching as A.J and Setsuna as they began heading towards the front door.

"I really don't want to talk about it anymore."

The young tomboy shrugged her shoulders. "Too late now, you already opened your mouth. Now you have to deal with."

Serena glared at her sister than sighed heavily, wondering if she did the right thing.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Setsuna pushed the doorbell to the Tsukino household, trying to straighten her outfit and straighten up the papers that were wildly hanging out of a manila folder in her hand. The door suddenly opened and a disheveled Elaine appeared in the doorway, a small smile upon her face.

"Hey, come on in."

Setsuna nodded, stepping into the house, A.J following behind her. The social worker spotted Ken pacing the living room as he gave A.J and herself a quick glance, before chewing on his fingernails.

Elaine closed the front door behind them, eyes falling upon her husband. "Ken, please sit down." She then turned her gaze upon Setsuna and A.J. "Please take a seat and help yourselves to some tea and cookies." She replied, ushering them to a seat and showing them the tray of cookies and tea on the coffee table.

Setsuna cleared her throat as she took a seat, with A.J sitting beside her. "So, tell me what happened." She replied, while helping herself to some tea.

Elaine and Ken sat down across from them and Elaine scooted up in her seat to respond. "Serena and I went to the baby store downtown. We were looking for some clothes and Serena had asked if she could look at some toys and I told her that she could and that I would join her as soon as I was done looking at the clothes. Not too long after she left, I saw a crowd of people running towards the toy section of the store and then I heard a loud scream. Being that I knew that Serena was over there, I quickly headed over there. The toy section was so packed, that I couldn't get through…than out of nowhere I felt somewhere grab a hold of my waist…and when I looked down, it was Serena."

Elaine sighed heavily and Ken rubbed his wife's back comfortingly, giving her a reassuring smile. The lavender haired woman returned the smile and than casted her eyes up at her two guests. "She was as pale as a ghost…her eyes were wild and delirious and she had blood trailing down the side of the mouth." Elaine swallowed deeply as the image of her foster daughter's terrified expression marring her features. "She said that she wanted to leave and had refused to say anything else until Amara came home. She all of a sudden came downstairs and told us that her father was in the store and tried to snatch her up. She said that an older woman had spotted them and started to hit him with her purse and that was when Serena escaped and found me."

Setsuna chewed on the end of her pen as she listened to the nurse explain what had happened. Sighing heavily with a shake of the head, she placed her cup of tea down and leaned back in her seat.

"I knew that this may happen one day…I just didn't expect it to be so soon."

Ken suddenly stopped chewing in his fingernails and looked upon the social working questioningly. "So what are we going to do now…I mean…he found them."

"That he did." Muttered Setsuna lowly, furrowing her brows in deep thought. "Though, I want to know how he found them. This case was supposed to be kept low key because of the situation of the case. How did he know you would be at that particular store?"

"Maybe he was already in there before Serena and I entered the store." replied Elaine.

"It was a baby store, he wouldn't just be in their hanging around." stated A.J. as he scratched at his chin as he pondered over Setsuna's questions. "He must have followed you from somewhere."

Elaine furrowed her brow. "Serena and I left straight from home."

Setsuna and A.J. narrowed her eye as the social worker began to speak. "You made no other pit stops? You went to that baby store directly from here?"

At Elaine's nod, Setsuna and A.J. glanced at each other worriedly, causing Ken to frown deeply. "What's wrong?" questioned the mechanic.

"He must have followed you from here." Spoke A.J. softly.

At this, both Elaine's and Ken's eyes widened in horror. "How the fuck does he know where we leave?" shouted Ken as he abruptly stood to his feet and began to space the living room like before the guests had arrived.

"I don't know." replied Setsuna with a small shake of the head, and then turned to look upon A.J. "We need to take drastic measures. "

Elaine arched a brow as A.J. nodded in agreement. "What do you mean by drastic measures?"

A.J. sighed. "Being that the girls' father may know where they live, we need to become extremely cautious. I want you guys on watch."

"On watch…as in having the police watch our house?" questioned Ken.

A.J. nodded. "Yes, they will watch your house, escort you to and from work and take the girl to and from school…pretty much from here on out you will have a police officer nearby."

"That seems to be extremely drastic." muttered Elaine.

"It is, but it needs to be done to assure the girls' safety." replied Setsuna, taking another sip of tea. "As well as yours."

"I understand that…but do you honestly think he will try again? "

"Yes I do believe he will come back and it will be worse than trying to snatch them up at a store." A.J. sighed heavily. "We are dealing with a drug crazed maniac with a bad history and we have to be on our toes. I don't want to scare you but this is now a matter of life and death."

Setsuna nodded in agreement. "We will have this set up to start tomorrow and I will call you in the morning to finalize what the game plan is. Though, I would like to talk to Serena before we head out. "

"Yes, if Serena can confirm that it was her father than I will contact the news stations and inform them of what happened and have them post Wallace's picture on the news. He will be placed on the most wanted list; we have to catch him as soon as possible."

Elaine nodded and stood to go and quickly retrieve the small blonde. Within a few short moments, the duo entered the room and Serena took a seat in between her foster her parents. She grinned up at Setsuna, although she shifted slightly wanting to get this over with.

Setsuna returned the smile, as she spotted the girl withering in anxiousness. "How are you doing Serena?"

"I'm doing good Setsuna!"

"That's good…now you know why we want to talk to you right?"

Serena's bright smile fell into a slight frown. "You want to know what happened today."

"Correct." replied Setsuna as she took another small sip from her tea. "Please tell me everything that happened today?"

The small blonde nodded, telling Setsuna everything that happened, from the moment she left Elaine's side, down to when the women were beating her father senseless with their purses. Once the blonde was finished A.J. leaned forward, placing his own cup of tea down on the coffee table.

"Now are you absolutely positive that it was your father?"

Serena nodded her head. "Yes, I'm sure."

A.J. smiled. "Good, that's all I needed to know."

Elaine stood, ushering Serena up the stairs as A.J. and Setsuna stood in unison and retrieved all of their belongings. They both shook Ken's hand as Elaine made her way backing in the living to stand beside her husband and they walked their guests towards the front door.

"I'll be contacting the news stations soon and there will be a police officer outside your home first thing in the morning." Replied A.J, giving Ken one last handshake.

"If anything else happens, don't hesitate to give me a call." replied Setsuna. Both Elaine and Ken nodded and bid the social worker and police officer farewell before silently closing the door behind them.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Alan smiled softly as he delicately polished his beloved flute, then placed the pieces back together. Once he was finished, he placed the instrument within its case and was about to close the lid when he heard his office door creak open. Turning, he spotted his wife standing in the doorway, eyes as wide as saucers and skin as pale as a ghost.

Furrowing his brows, Alan quickly made his way towards his wife, pulling her into a tight embrace.

"What's the matter?"

Anne swallowed deeply. "Wallace is in trouble."

Alan arched a brow, completely taken aback by what she had said. "What do you mean Wallace is in trouble?"

"I was just watching the news and there was an incident down at the Babies R Us in downtown. Some guy was trying to abduct a 7 year old little girl. "Anne paused, chewing on her bottom lip. "Their main suspect is Wallace…his picture is all over the television."

"Are you fucking kidding me!" shouted Alan in a mixture of anger and shock. "Why the hell would he try to abduct a child?"

"Think about it." replied Anne. She suddenly shook her head as her husband stared down at her dumbly.

"Don't you find it weird that his kids are nowhere to be seen? That he is staying here and not at home all of a suddedn; he came to our home with a bullet in his stomach! I think that child he tried to abduct was one of his daughters."

Alan sighed heavily, running a hand through his hair. "Well…if all of this is true, then Wallace cannot stay here. We don't need any drama in our lives…we are trying to build a family; we don't need this."

"I agree." said Anne, looking up at her husband. Just as she was about to saying something else, they heard the front door of their home open and slam shut. Anne shifted a nervous gaze upon her husband, and Alan placed a reassuring hand upon the woman's shoulder, flashing her a warm smile.

"I will handle everything, come on."

Anne slowly nodded, though she had a very unsettling feeling welling up in the pit of her stomach. Ignoring the sensation, she silently followed after her husband as he exited the room and began to descend down the stairs.

Upon descending down the stair way, Alan arched a brow as his long time friend came into view and he eyed the Gucci symbol welts stamped on Wallace's battered face. Biting back a laugh, he stepped off the last step, folding his arms across his chest.

"Man…what the hell happened to your face?"

Wallace scowled, running his grimy fingers through his shaggy dirty blonde locks. "Don't worry about it."

Alan frowned slightly, sneaking a quick glance at his wife whom was silently scrutinizing the ex-drug lord's posture. Turning back to his friend, Alan cleared his throat lightly.

"Come upstairs Wallace, I need to talk to you."

Wallace arched a brow at Alan's retreating form than shifted his gaze towards Anne. He frowned, not liking the way the woman was eyeing him, though he proceeded to follow after his friend in curiosity. He followed the man up the stairs and entered Alan's music room/office and he watched as his friend began to pace in front of him, staring at nothing in particular.

Wallace got the feeling that he wasn't going to like this conversation and gritted his teeth in slight irritation. He already had enough problems to deal with; he didn't want to add anything else to his already overflowing plate of bad deeds.

"What do you want to talk to me about?" came Wallace's gruff reply.

Alan stopped pacing and buried his hands deep within the front pockets of his slacks. "What kind of trouble are you in?"

Wallace's misty green eyes widen in surprise, before they narrowed dangerously close. "What the fuck kind of question is that? I'm not in any kind of trouble!"

Alan frowned deeply, his posture tensing slightly at his friend's bold faced lie. "You're all over the damn news man for attempting to kidnap a child! Then you walk in here beat the hell up with friggin' Gucci symbols stamped all over your face. What the fuck are you doing?"

"What the hell are you talking about?" yelled Wallace as a million and one thoughts were flowing through his mind. His face was posted all over the fucking news, people were looking for him, he had to get the hell out of here!

Alan placed a hand on his friend's shoulder, though Wallace jumped back from the touch, slapping his friend's hand away from him as if he had been burned.

"Don't fucking touch me!" snapped the disgruntled man.

Alan threw his hands up defensively. "Whoa man, I'm trust trying to help. Talk to me…is this about Serena and Amara…or maybe Ellen?"

Wallace's head snapped up, a crazed wild expression held in his eyes. "What the fuck are you talking about?" Wallace took a menacing step forwards and shoved Alan back hard, causing the man to stumble back, tripping over his own two feet and colliding heavily to the floor.

"Who the fuck have you been talking to!" shouted Wallace, eyes looking around him wildly before they fell upon the well polished flute.

Alan stared up at his friend with wide startled eyes and fear clearly apparent in his voice. "I don't know anything and I haven't been talking to anyone. I'm just asking! They said you were trying to kidnap a kid…was it one of the girls you were trying to get back?"

Wallace casted dark eyes upon his friend and sneered at him. "You're trying to get me caught…I'm not telling you anything mother fucker!"

"I'm trying to get you help Wallace!"

Wallace looked down at him appalled. "Help? I don't need any fucking help." The drug addict shook his head incredulously.

"What…you think you're better than me now?"

It was Alan's turned to look appalled. "No I don't think that!"

Wallace chuckled, with a slight shake of his head. "It wasn't long a got you were buying from me…and now that you've gone thru rehab and walking around like you've never tried to sell your soul to the devil for some crack rocks…you think I'm in need of help?"

Wallace gave a dry chuckle, glaring down at Alan's terrified form. "It's time for me to bring you down a notch you Bastard!" shouted Wallace and before Alan could react, the ex-drug lord had grabbed a hold of his flute and had brought it crashing down upon the top of his head.

Alan fell flat on his back, grabbing at his head, his hands immediately becoming soaked with blood. With his heart pounding heavily against his ribcage, Alan tried to scoot himself away from Wallace as the man slowly stalked his was in front of him, holding his now bloodied flute above his head.

"Wallace please…I'm just trying to help you. I swear!"

Wallace snickered, clenching the flute more tightly in his hand. "The only one that is in any need of help is you." Wallace grinned as his friend's eyes widened in horror as he brought the flute down and repetitively beat the musician in the head with his own instrument.

The shaggy blonde haired man loved every moment of feeling his friend's skull breaking with every strike he made, the blood painting his face and the room as it splattered in all directions. Finally stopping, Wallace looked down at his handy work, Alan's face bashed in beyond recognition, body completely drenched in its own blood.

Wallace just couldn't stopped the laughter that erupted from him.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Anne jumped startled as she heard the shouts coming from upstairs, followed by a loud thump. Swallowing down her fear, Anne slowly began to walk towards the stairway and began to slowly ascend them. Her mind was screaming at her to turn away and to run and find help, though her body kept moving robotically up the stairway, her heart pounding in her chest.

The silence was unnerving her and she wished she could hear her husband say something, or even Wallace at least. Nearing the door way, she took a deep breath and stepped towards her husband's music room/office and her eyes widened in horror, seeing her husband in a bloody mess on the floor. Her gaze than shifted towards Wallace as the man was standing before his former friend, blood coated Flute clenched in his hand, and the eeriest smile on his face.

Without thinking, she screamed out her husband's name and quickly darted into the room to see if he was still alive. Though, she never reached her husband's side as she felt a powerful blow come to this side of her head. Her body fell heavily to the floor as she grabbed at her throbbing head, trying to clear her blurry vision. When her eyes focused once more, Wallace was standing over her with a dark gleam in his eyes as he suddenly reached down and grabbed her by the throat, lifting her effortlessly.

Drawing the woman closer to his face, Wallace smirked as he dropped the now broken flute carelessly to the floor and trailed his now free hand down the side of Anne's rapidly paling face.

"You're so fucking beautiful." whispered Wallace huskily.

Anne hawked and spit in the murder's face. "You fucking monster!"

Wallace's grin only widened as he suddenly reared his fist back and stuck Anne clearly in her face. "You have no idea." He growled before dragging the now kicking and screaming woman towards her bedroom.

Author: Well that's all for now I hope you enjoyed ^_^ Don't forget to review and let me know what you think!


	27. B2: Chapter 11

Author: WUUUUUUUH! Over 300 reviews, fuck yea ^_^! Thanks so much, my second fic to break the 300 mark; so stoked! N E ways, enough of me cheering and on to the next chapter; I hope you guys enjoy!

Disclaimer: Don't own Sm

The Tsukinos closed the door after A.J. and Setsuna, the both of them walking down the walkway in unison. The social worker ran a hand tiredly though her bangs with a heavy sigh.

"What do you think of all of this?"

A.J. chewed on his bottom lip, furrowing his brows slightly. "I think I need to pay someone a visit."

At this, Setsuna arched a brow. "Who?"

"Dom."

Setsuna scrunched up her nose slightly in confusion. "Dom? Why?"

"There is no way Wallace was able to find these girls without some inside intel. The only person I can possibly think of is Dom. They were best friends in high school; I would assume they would still be friends now." A.J paused burying his hands deep within the pockets of his slacks. "Judging from those write-offs that I've found, Dom has helped him in the past."

Setsuna slowly nodded her head, her mind slowly grasping the information. She came upon her car and opened the driver's side door, turning to face her long time friend.

"Alright, while you're doing that, I'll be at home finishing off some paperwork." replied the social worker as she attempted to stifle a yawn.

A.J. smiled, patting the woman on her shoulder. "I'll call you in the morning. Bye."

"Bye." said Setsuna as she sat down into the driver's seat and closed the car door. Within a matter of seconds the social worker was down the driveway and down the road; A.J. following her lead.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Setsuna sighed heavily as she closed the door to her car and slowly walked her way towards the front door of her home. Opening the door, her eyes were immediately drawn towards the living room where she spotted Hotaru lying across the sofa, sleeping soundly.

Closing and locking the front door, Setsuna made her way into the room, placing her belongings down on a side table. She took a seat on the edge of the sofa, beside her girlfriend, whom was laid back, with one arm behind her head and the other lying across her stomach.

Setsuna leaned in and brushed Hotaru's bangs from her face and rested her a hand upon her lover's cheek.

"Hotaru…wake up." The psychologist turned her head into Setsuna's hand and nuzzled her into it slightly. "Hm?"

"Wake up." replied Setsuna softly.

With her eyes still closed, Hotaru shook her head. "No."

Setsuna frowned as she trailed her hand down towards Hotaru's shoulder and she swiftly pulled the sleeping woman up and took a hold of her other shoulder with her other hand. Without out notice, she began to shake the hell out of her girlfriend, causing her to jolt awake and slap Setsuna's hand's off of her.

"Are you serious!" screamed Hotaru in outrage.

"You're awake aren't you?" stated Setsuna calmly.

"What the hell kind of question is that?" snapped Hotaru, glaring at her girlfriend heatedly. "You know I hate it when you do that shit!"

Setsuna shrugged her shoulders nonchalantly. "If you would have woken up when I tried to do it nicely, than I wouldn't have shook the hell out of you."

Hotaru growled lowly in her throat, a glare straight from the pits of hell aimed at the unfazed Social Worker. "Hnn…I should sock you in the nose." muttered the pissed off raven darkly, before sighing softly, running a hand through her disheveled bangs. "What did you have to tell me?"

Setsuna smirked, drawing out an arm and wrapping it around her lover's shoulders and pulled the woman towards her. She leaned them both back against the backrest of the sofa and began to run her fingers through Hotaru's short raven locks.

"A.J. and I talked to the Tsukinos and Serena today; they've confirmed that Wallace attempted to abduct Serena at store."

"Oh my God! How is Serena?"

"She seemed a little shaken up, her lip was busted from her father hitting her in the mouth. All and all…she seemed to be taking the situation quite well."

Hotaru furrowed her brows, tightening her grip around her lover's slim waist. "How do you think he found them…I mean…we were being so careful about this."

"A.J. thinks that Dom is giving Wallace information about the girls. From what the Tsukinos and Serena has told us, Wallace knows where they live and followed Elaine and Serena to that store. "

Hotaru shook her head with a frown. "That Bastard! Is he trying to get these girls killed?"

Setsuna sighed. "I don't know what his intentions are, for all we know, he doesn't know what Wallace's true intentions are. This is all just getting so crazy…I never would have thought that Wallace could be someone like this. If A.J. is right with all of his assumptions…than these girls must be protected at all costs; Wallace has seriously gone off the deep end."

Hotaru nodded her head in agreement; fear gripping her heart for the two girls she has grown to love. "This is starting to become really scary, I don't want Wallace getting them."

Setsuna frowned deeply. "He will not get his hands on those girls, we have the Tsukinos and the girls on around the clock watch by the police."

Hotaru chewed on her bottom lip, nodding her head slightly. "I just hope that's enough."

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Wallace grinned as he felt Anne's trembling form beneath him as he had one of his hands wrapped securely around her throat. He found it highly amusing to cut off her oxygen supply by gripping her throat with his large hand and watch as she would thrash beneath him, eyes watering and bulging from her head, and her complexion turning a rather startling bluish-purple color. Though, once Anne got to that point, Wallace would release his grasp and watch the woman greedily suck in the welcoming oxygen before bursting into another set of tears and whimpering.

Finally becoming bored with this game, he raised himself up and pulled himself from between the battered woman's legs. He pulled his pants up from around his ankles and stared down at Anne's fully exposed body, eyeing the bruises that decorated the majority of the woman's pale skin.

Wallace flashed Anne a dazzling smile as she curled up into a ball and began to sob quietly, her form trembling violently. Wallace than reached into his back pocket and pulled out a blade he has always carried with him since he was at the age of 15. He flicked a switch on the side of the handle and grinned as the silver blade swung out into view, his wild and crazed eyes staring back at him.

Turning from the blade, he advance towards the bed and climbed up on it. He grabbed a hold of Anne and pushed her onto her back, his free hand taking a hold of the violently thrashing woman. He gripped his knife as his other hand grabbed Anne by the throat and jerked her up and slammed her back against the head board of her disheveled bed.

Anne whimpered as she desperately tried to remove Wallace's tight grip from around her throat. "Please! Please don't do this…I-I'm pregnant…" Anne bit back a cry as she blinked the tears from her eyes. "Alan…h-he didn't know …"

Wallace shook his head. "Damn…that fucker was going to be a father…" he muttered before shrugging his shoulders. "Too late now."

The ex-drug lord stared upon the trembling woman. "Hmm…now you won't be a mother either." He growled, gripping his knife tightly in his hand, jabbing it forward and plunging it into Anne's abdomen.

Anne gasped as the searing pain tore through her insides, her wide eyes locked upon Wallace's grinning face. She couldn't even scream as she felt Wallace twisting the blade within her and before she knew it, she blacked out as her supposed friend rammed his fist across the side of her head.

Wallace suddenly jerked the knife from within Anne and brought the blood coated blade towards his face, eyeing the rich crimson liquid in fascination. He suddenly grinned, looking down at the unconscious woman without a bit of remorse. Closing his blade within its handle, Wallace placed his weapon within his back pocket and stepped away from the bed, exiting the room and soon out of the house.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Dom sighed heavily, leaning back in his office seat and staring blankly at the computer screen before him. It was another late night for him, filing paper work and wanting nothing more than to be at home spending time with his family.

Stifling a yawn, Dom ran hand through his silver locks and lazily turned his head towards the doorway of his office and nearly jumped out of his skin as he spotted A.J. standing in the doorway.

"Jesus Christ man! What the fuck are you doing here?" shouted Dom as he clutched at his chest, attempting to steady his rapid heartbeat.

A.J. stepped into the room, closing the door silently behind. "You and I need to talk."

Dom narrowed his eyes with a small frown. "About what?"

A.J, smiled, shoving his hands deep within his pants' pockets. "What do you know about Wallace Tenoh's whereabouts?"

Dom's eyes nearly bulged from his head at the unexpected questioned and he began to sputter. "W-What kind of question is t-that?"

The blonde haired police officer shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly. "Well, you guys are best friends…I figure you would know where he is."

"Friends?" Dom shook his head with a dark chuckle. "Wallace and I are not friends!"

A.J. arched a brow at this, slightly surprised. "What you mean you guys are not friends?"

"Just like I fucking said, Wallace and I are not friends and we haven't been in years."

The blonde narrowed his eyes on the silver haired man with a clenched jaw. "You say you two are not friends but I seemed to have stumbled upon quite a few write-off for several of Wallace's lackeys with your name on it."

The father of 3 felt his heart stop in his chest as he stared at A.J.'s smug smirk blankly. "What are you talking about?"

The blonde shook his head with a 'tsk' as he crossed his arms over his chest. "Don't play stupid Dom…I found those write-ups that appears to prove that you were helping Wallace with his drug deals." Seeing the bead of sweat trickle down the side of Dom's face, A.J. grinned as he realized he had the man's attention.

Licking his lips, A.J. leaned against Dom's desk and stared him squarely in the eye. "It has come to my attention that someone has been meddling in my case and has given Wallace some dire information…and I have the feeling that someone was you."

Dom stood abruptly to his feet, slamming his fist down against his work table in outrage. "You don't know what the hell you're talking about so shut your fucking mouth!"

Before Dom could register what was happening, he suddenly found himself pressed up against a wall, A.J. in his face and gripping by the collar of his shirt.

"I know it was you! I swear to God…if any harm comes to those girls I will rip off your testicles and ram them down your throat!" threatened the blonde as he rammed his fist into the wall, only centimeters away from Dom's head.

Releasing Dom, A.J. stepped away from him, running a hand shakily though his short locks. Exhaling heavily, the blonde glared at the shaking man before reaching into his pocket and pulling out his ringing phone.

Dom silently watched as A.J.'s eyes widened at whatever information was being said on the other end of the phone. The police officer quickly ended his call and shoved his phone back within his pocket and walked out of the room without a word.

Once A.J. was out of sight, Dom slowly sunk to the floor, burying his face into his knees and shaking his head.

Karma definitely had something in store for him.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

A.J. pulled up to the residents of where the several of his dispatch crew currently resided. There were several cop cruisers and two ambulances parked outside of the victims' home. Spotting one of his comrades, A.J. made his way of to the officer that was scribbling something down in a note pad.

"Brad."

The brunette jerked his head up and gave a small smile towards the blonde. "About time you showed up."

"Yeah…yeah…yeah" muttered A.J. with a roll of his eyes. "So what's going on?"

Brad's face fell as he casted a weary glance towards the home before them. "A man was clobbered to death with a flute and a woman beaten, raped, stabbed and left for dead in her bedroom."

A.J. arched a brow. "She's alive?"

"Barely…but yes she is alive."

"What are their names?"

"Alan and Anne Kuroso." Seeing the frown that formed on the blonde's face, Brad arched a brow curiously. "Something wrong?"

"Nothing…its just…I knew them from back in high school. Anne painted a mural in the high school's lunchroom for our senior class and Alan was in the band; he played the flute. The both of them own the music store near that Catholic school in town."

"Oh wow…my son gets his guitar strings from there. Alan seemed like a really nice guy…never even knew his name until now."

A.J. nodded his head. "Yeah…he was a real good guy." Clearing his throat suddenly, the blonde continued. "Who notified the police about this?"

"Anne's younger sister April came to crash at their place. Being that she had a house key, she went inside and saw all the lights on and the TV blaring, but Alan and Anne were nowhere in sight. She headed upstairs and found the both of them and quickly called the police."

A.J. shook his head, not wanting to imagine how the girl felt at this point and time. "Were there any witnesses stating what could have possibly happened?"

"Nobody saw or heard anything; so we don't have any leads at the moment."

"Where is Anne now?"

"She is being placed on a stretcher so she can be rushed to the hospital; April is going to tag along with her. "

A.J. gave a small pat on the back of Brad's shoulder with a small nod of the head. "Alright, thanks for the information. I'm going to head to the hospital and talk to April when she arrives and find out the extent of Anne's injuries."

"Alright man, we'll wrap it up here."

"Thanks; see ya."

"Later." replied the blonde with a wave of the hand as he jogged back to his car so he could head towards his destination.

Author: That's all for now, please review and tell me what you think ^_^


	28. B2: Chapter 12

Author: Thanks soooo much for the reviews you guys, still hella excited that I've broken the 300 reviews bracket :) sorry for the wait, been dealing with the real world and haven't had the time to sit and work on this but I've gotten a new phone and downloaded a app so I can work on my stories through my phone and omg it works! Soooo I'm going to attempt to work on my fics through my phone on my spare time and just email it to my computer to fix it up and then post; wish me luck. Well enough of my ramblings and enjoy the next chapter!

Disclaimer: I don't own sm

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A.J. drummed his fingertips along the dashboard of his police cruiser as he sat inside of his vehicle outside Juuban hospital. Anne had been transported here a few hours prior and was undergoing surgery. Alan was pronounced dead at the scene from being repeatedly struck in the head by his own beloved flute.

The police officer clenched his jaw at the thought and was seething in anger. He had to get to the bottom of this; Alan and Anne were such good people...he had to know how they had gotten into such a predicament as this.

Sighing heavily, the tired officer opened the door to his vehicle and stepped out. He stretched slightly to loosen the aching muscles in his back as he slowly began to ascend towards the waiting room of the E.R. ward. He wanted some answers and he wanted to know everything Anne's younger sister knew.

Upon entering the building, A.J. spotted the young pink haired woman sitting in one of the hard plastic seats within the waiting room. Her dark blue eyes were clouded over as the woman stared at nothing in particular, soft manicured fingers drumming impatiently at her side. The lost look upon the woman's face bothered the cop so he decided to clear his throat and gain April's attention.

The action worked as April suddenly jerked up in her seat before her wide startled eyes feel upon A.J.

"Sorry for startling you." replied A.J. as he stepped forward with an outstretched hand.

April gave him a small smile as she stood from her seat and shook the officer's much larger hand. "It's alright."

A.J. nodded and waited patiently for the young woman to retake her seat. "I am Officer Furuhata and I want to ask you some questions about what happened tonight."

April nodded her head vigorously, ready to answer anything he asked.

A.J. cleared his throat once more and burried his hands within the slacks of his pants. "Do you know anyone that would want to harm your sister or Alan?"

April shook her head immediately. "Not that I know of."

The officer nodded, retrieving a hand from his pocket to thoughtfully rub his chin. "Have they recently made friends with anyone or perhaps have you seen anyone suspicious hanging around their home?"

April once again shook her head with a slight shrug of the shoulders. "No...no new friends and I haven't seen anyone suspicious...Alan and Anne never said anything to me about anything like that either. The only person that's been around is their friend."

At this, A.J. arched a brow in curiosity. "Friend?"

April nodded. "Yeah...Wallace."

The blonde's eyes nearly bulged out of his head at the name. "Wallace who?"

"Tenoh."

A.J's eyes widened even larger as April spoke of the name of the man he has been attempting to track down for months. With wild and urgent eyes, the cop grasped a hold of April's shoulders.

"Do you know where he is?"

The young pinkette arched a brow in confusion. "No...why? I mean...what does he have to do with all of this?"

"Everything." replied the officer as he ran a shaky hand through his short tresses. "How long has he been staying at your sister's home?"

"A few months."

A.J. gritted his teeth in anger; that bastard had been in Juuban the entire time...right under his fucking nose! The young officer quickly pulled out his cell phone and quickly pushed in some digits before placing the phone to his ear.

"Hey Dave...have you found any prints within that home yet? " there was moment of silence as the cop listened intently. "All over the flute? Run those prints to a guy named Wallace Tenoh, I have the feeling that this has something to do with him. I'll be down there in a few."

A.J. closed the lid to his phone and looked at April as she was staring back at him in a loss for words. "Let me see your phone.

The pinkette silently obliged to the request and handed the officer her phone and watched as he placed a number into her cellular device.

"I placed my number into your phone...as soon as your sister wakes up, call me."

April nodded and before she could get another word in, the officer was already out of the double doors and heading towards his car.

-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-

Dom yawned tiredly as he untangled himself from his wife's arms and slowly climbed out of the bed. He exited his bedroom and began to head down the stairs but paused as he heard noises...as if someone was talking.

Furrowing his brows and tensing slightly as the hairs on the back of his neck began to stand on end. Slowly creeping down the stairs and ready to attack at any moment, Dom sighed in relief as he saw that the TV was on in the living room.

As he was about to leave to turn and head into the kitchen, the news station's breaking news alert caught his attention as the newscaster began to speak on the two crimes that had been committed today and how the reports said it could be by the same person. The first account was attempted kidnapping and the second was a homicide case with the result of one victim dead and another in critical condition with low chances of surviving.

What made Dom's jaw drop was when the picture of Wallace Tenoh appeared on the screen and was claimed to be on Tokyo's most wanted list.

"Holy shit!" exclaimed the silver haired man.

"I see you like my handy work." came a gruff reply.

"Jesus fucking Christ man!" Yelped Dom as he stumbled back and grabbed his chest in surprise. He quickly leaned forward and flicked on the kitchen light to see Wallace sitting at his kitchen table, sipping on a hot cup of tea.

"What the fuck are you doing in my house? How the hell did you even get in here!"

Wallace smirked as he took another small sip of tea from the light blue mug. "Your door was unlocked, I think you're slipping...but that doesn't matter because if it was locked I'd have picked the lock anyways."

Dom frowned deeply...he never left his door unlocked...was he that out of it after his encounter with A.J. earlier...apparently. The F.B.I. agent shook his head to clear his thoughts realizing that that didn't matter, like Wallace had mentioned, he would have gotten in his home regardless; the real question was why the fuck was he here now?

"Why the hell are you here?"

Wallace smirked. "Is that how you greet a long time friend?"

"We are not friends you sick bastard! Now why are you here?"

The blonde chuckled as he drummed his fingers along the top of the kitchen table. "As you can see I've gotten myself into some trouble."

"Some?" Dom nearly screeched incredulously. "You tried to kidnap someone and now have a murder charge hanging over your head...possibly two. Have you lost your fucking mind?"

Wallace chuckled once more, a lopsided grin upon his grungy face. "I've lost my mind a long time ago."

Dom frowned lightly. "I've noticed."

Wallace grin faltered slightly but it soon turned into a smirk as he stood from his seat. "Being that I've gotten myself into some trouble I am going to have to disappear for a while but don't get too happy." Stated the blonde as his smirk broadened. "I will keep in touch."

"Look man...I don't want to be involved in your shit anymore."

"You have no choice, you owe me."

"I don't owe you a goddamn thing! I got you off from killing Ellen we're fucking even!"

Wallace erupted into a cackle as he threw his head back. "I know it was you that snitched on me all those years ago...you're the one that told Donny about our last deal and got me caught."

At the accusation, Dom literally choked on his spit. "Are you fucking serious? Why would I snitch on you!"

"Because you wanted all the money for yourself."

"You were my best friend Wallace, you were a brother to me! You were the one that helped after I fucked my family into debt; you were the one that got me back on my feet. I would have never turned my back on you!" Snapped Dom.

"Stop lying to me!" Growled the blonde as he picked up the mug from the table and threw the hot tea in his former friend's face. Dom grunted and immediately grabbed at his face as Wallace grabbed him by the back of the collar and rammed him face first into the counter top.

Dom fell to the floor moaning as he rocked from side to side, clutching his now throbbing head. Wallace sneered down at him and was about to kick the downed man in his side when he heard a creak coming from the stairway.

Wallace quickly kneeled down beside his past business partner. "You better take advantage of me being gone for a while because I will be back and you will help me get those little bitches back...if you don't... I have no problem breaking your kids' necks and making your wife my bitch!" With those cold words said, Wallace stood and quickly left Dom's side and soon out of his home.

Dom grunted as he slowly sat up haphazardly wiping the tea from his face and then clutched his head in his hands.

"Daddy?"

Dom jerked his head up and slightly frowned as he spotted his youngest son entering the kitchen.

Sapphire slowly made his way into the kitchen with a perplexed look upon his face. The five year old boy had heard majority of the conversation that his father had with the unknown yet strangely familiar man. Although he had heard majority of the conversation, he had no clue what they were talking about but he knew that it was important and that he needed to remember this moment.

Standing before his father, the boy eyed the man's reddening face from the scalding tea and the knot on his forehead from being rammed face first into the table. Kneeling down beside his father, Sapphire looked the man directly in the eyes.

"Are you okay?

Dom tried to flash his son a reassuring smile but it failed miserably. "Yeah...I'm okay. Just had a bit of an accident."

At his father's bold faced lie, Sapphire frowned. "Who was that man you was talking to you?"

Dom visibly stiffened and turned his head away from his son. "There was no one here."

The boy furrowed his brows. "Yeah there was...I saw you two talking and then he got mad at you and threw that tea in your face and..."

"I TOLD YOU NO ONE WAS HERE!" Snapped Dom as he snatched his son up by the arm and drew him in close. "You didn't see or hear anything...you got that?" Growled Dom with a snarl on his face.

Sapphire immediately nodded his head with tears in his eyes as he snatched his arm from his father's painfully tight grasp. Once he freed himself, the five year old bolted out of the kitchen and up the stairs to his room.

Dom sighed heavily, slowly running his fingers through his damped hair before climbing to his feet to retreat to his room as well.

-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-

A.J. taped his foot impatiently as he was waiting for the results of the finger prints along Alan's broken flute. He heard a door opening and he quickly stood erect, eyes falling upon his coworker David.

"It's a match." stated David.

A.J. ran a hand tiredly down his face with a small shake of the head. "We've been looking for this mother fucker for months and the damn bastard has been residing in Juuban all this time."

David patted his friend on the back. "Don't beat yourself up over it...the guy is slick as hell."

The blonde cop shook his head with a frown. "If we would have found him earlier, we could have saved a life...all of this shit could have been prevented! Plus he got away; there is no telling what he is up to now."

"How the hell could we have known he was in Juuban A.J? All we know now is that the bastard is slipping...we will catch him soon."

"Or... Wallace realizes that he's slipping and is planning on disappearing for a while before he makes his next move." muttered A.J.

David shrugged his shoulders. "All we can do is hope and see if any of this evidence can lead us in the right direction."

As A.J. was about to respond his phone began to ring. Pulling the cellular device from his pocket, he quickly flipped the lid and answered. A small smile appeared on his face as he withdrew the phone from his ear, closed it and hurriedly slipped it back into his pocket as he glanced over at David.

"That was the victim's sister...Anne is awake."

-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-

A.J. bolted through the emergency ward and frowned as he didn't spot April within the waiting room. He immediately stalked his way to the receptionist and tapped on the Plexiglas, drawing the old woman's attention. He whipped out his badge and flashed it towards the woman.

The old woman smiled politely. "You want to see the victim that was stabbed?"

The officer nodded and the older woman picked up her phone and called for a doctor to escort him to the patient. Within a matter of minutes a young male doctor entered the waiting room and ushered the cop forward to follow him.

Once A.J. was at the doctor's side he began to ask questions. "How is she?"

"Too be honest...it's a miracle that this woman is even alive...hell...it's a miracle that the babies survived."

A.J's eyes widened. "Babies?"

"Yes...she's 9 weeks pregnant with twins. She was stabbed in the abdomen and by the wound I can tell that the person had twisted the blade within her, which caused a lot of damage and internal bleeding. If the attacker had gone either left or right a few more centimeters, than either twin wouldn't have made it." The doctor patted the cop on the shoulder, troubled by the saddened expression on the man's face. "If the paramedics wouldn't have gotten here as soon as they had, the patient would have bled to death."

"What is the full extent of her injuries?" Questioned A.J. as he swallowed the lump that formed in his throat.

The doctor rubbed at his graying beard. "She received 14 staples within her abdomen, minor concussion, heavy bruising around her face and neck and other various parts of her body...we also found evidence that she had been raped. I don't understand why she didn't have a miscarriage...she has been through so much within the last few hours." The doctor sighed softly. "We were able to stabilize her and I believe she will make a full recovery physically...mentally...I believe she needs to talk to a specialist."

"I understand...this is a traumatizing ordeal. Not only has she been beaten, raped, and put to the brink of death...her husband was murdered and she has two children to bare and raise alone."

"That's a damn shame." muttered the doctor as he stopped in front of a door. "This is her room."

"Thanks." Replied A.J. as he quietly opened the door and stepped inside. The room was dimly lit as he spotted April sitting in a seat beside her sister's bed, holding the woman's hand delicately within her own.

His eyes slowly feel upon Anne and he had to stop his breath from hitching in his throat. Both of her eyes were nearly swollen shut, lips cracked and blood stained, and the bruises that littered her neck stood out like white paint on a black canvas.

The young cop clenched his fist in concealed rage; Anne did not deserve this and neither did Alan. Clearing his throat to get a grasp of his emotions, both Anne and April finally took notice of the blonde haired officer.

A.J. took this as a cue to perform his job. "Hello Anne, I am Officer Furuhata and I need to ask you some questions about what had happened tonite."

The battered pinkette stared at the officer blankly but gave him a small nod of approval. The officer smiled softly as he took a few steps closer to the bed to stand beside it.

"Do you know who done this to you?"

At the question, Anne turned her head away to stare at the wall absentmindedly.

"Wallace Tenoh."

A.J. clenched his jaw as the spoken name infuriated him. "Do you know why he would do something like this?

With her head still turned the pinkette began to speak in a low and shaky voice. "I was watching the news and saw the report about Wallace attempting to kidnap a child...I immediately went to Alan and told him what I saw." Anne paused as her bottom lip began to tremble as she urged herself to continue on with the story. "Alan said that he would talk to him...and that if all of this was true...than Wallace would have to leave."

"That is understandable." replied A.J. softly.

"I thought so too, anyways Wallace finally made his appearance and he was all beat up...like he was clobbered by a good bit of high priced purses. Alan than escorted Wallace upstairs to talk to him...things were quiet and then the shouting started and I heard a loud thud. Something told me to run...but I couldn't...I just had to make sure that my husband was alright." Anne felt the tears start to trail down her bruised face as she was wrapped in the memories that will haunt her for years to come.

"I went upstairs and found my husband lying in a pool of blood and Wallace standing over him...clenching Alan's flute in his hand...I knew I should have ran but I had to run to my husband's side and that's when Wallace struck me upside the head with the flute. After that he...he..." the pinkette couldn't finish as she burst into an onslaught of tears and heart wrenching sobs escaping her.

A.J. decided that it was his time to leave and he silently slipped out of the room, the image of a broken woman squalling in her sister's bosom branding his mind.

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Laura yawned and rubbed at her eyes before running a hand through her slightly tussled hair. She furrowed her brows as her gaze fell upon her husband's bare back and frowned as she noticed that his shoulders were trembling.

"Honey?" questioned Laura as she placed a cool hand upon A.J.'s shoulder.

The young cop sniffled, harshly rubbing the tears from his eyes with his forearm. "I'm fine...go back to sleep hun."

Laura narrowed her eyes dangerously close. "You are not fine...I've only seen you shed tears 3 times since I've met you."

A.J. frowned and slightly tilted his head to look at his wife. "I don't know what you are talking about."

Laura rolled her eyes. "Your cried when we recited our vows on our wedding day and you also cried when Andrew and Reika were born...so cut the macho man crap and tell me what's bothering you."

sighed heavily, running a hand down his flushed face. "It's all my fault."

The mother of two arched a brow startled yet confused. "What is your fault?"

"What happened to Alan and Anne was my fault."

Laura looked down right appalled. "That was not your fault."

"It was...if I hadn't of put Wallace on the news than none of this would of happened...a woman lost her husband today as well as nearly her own life and the lives of two unborn children. I am the cause of her misery and pain."

Lauara leaned forward and wrapped her arms around her husband from behind and gave him the tightest hug she could muster. "You did not know that this was going to happen...your were trying to help...you were trying to protect the lives of two little girls that have been through hell and back...two little girls you've grown to love and are the best of friends with our son. Unfortunately something bad had happened at the expense...but you did the right thing. In the long run...this may have been the smartest thing you could of done...Wallace's face is posted everywhere. Someone is bound to see him and you will have this nut behind bars in no time."

Laura smiled softly and gave her husband a small kiss on the cheek. "Stop blaming yourself because what had happened tonight was not your fault. Now lie down and go to sleep...you got a bad guy running around that needs to be served some justice."

A.J. smiled, lying down beside his wife. "God...I married the most amazing woman."

"You forgot the sexiest as well."

A.J. chuckles pulling his woman closer to him and falling into a blissful sleep of no regrets as the woman of his dreams softly ran her fingers through his soft blonde locks."

Author: Hope you guys enjoyed…apparently writing on my phone is muuuuuch easier, except when I email it to myself I can only send 3 pages at a time…aggravating. Looks like I will be investing in getting word perfect for my mobile device ^_^ n e ways, I have a little bit written for the next chapter and hopefully I can get it going and have it posted soon! Until than, please review!


	29. B2: Chapter 13

Author: Yeah...I know, it's been a very long time! Been dealing with a lot of bullshit in my life plus my ex smashed my computer screen, so I will have to wait a while before I can get a new computer screen and work on my other fics (-_-) N E Ways, thanks so much for the reviews, I greatly appreciate them and keep them coming ^_^

Disclaimer: Don't own SM

Emily lay sprawled out on top of her daughter's small twin size bed. She had been laying in that particular spot for the past 3 days as the reality of what she had done with her life began to finally sink in; she royally fucked up to put it simply.

She was alone...utterly alone in this fucked up little world...

And she done it to herself.

She pushed away the remaining two people that she loved and had loved her unconditionally back as well...all because of the guilt, the guilt that has been eating at her soul for years...the guilt of her sister's death.  
Some say that twins share a special bond...that they can share each others thoughts and sense when the other is in distress and so on. Emily was one to share that particular bond with her twin sister Ellen; a bond that ran deep.

Nearly 5 years ago, Emily was able to sense that something was not right and was quick to notice the change in her sister. Emily's lively and out going sister had grown quiet and had became a recluse...the light makeup she'd apply to her face became heavier and more caked on. Her shinning blue eyes had begun to dull and look lifeless; Emily saw it all...and she was going to get to the bottom of it.

Emily had tried and tried to get her normally open sister to talk to her or to at least hint at what the problem was but to no avail. The older twin by two minutes had finally had enough of her sister avoiding her or completely ignoring her questions about what was going on. She soon realized that she had to get her sister by herself...Wallace seemed to be always lurking around...piercing green eyes always locked upon her twin.

Emily had finally gained the opportunity when her husband at the time was able to talk Wallace into riding to the store with him to get some much needed groceries for their normal weekly dinner gathering.

_**-/-/-/-Flashback-/-/-/-**_

_Once Emily was sure that the guys had left and her two nieces and daughter were playing in the living room, the elder twin snatched up her sister's hand and drug her to the kitchen.___

_She grabbed Ellen firmly by the shoulders and stared her hard in the eyes. "What the hell is wrong with you?"___

_Ellen frowned slightly, not at all surprised by her sister's question. "Nothing is wrong with me."___

_Emily gritted her teeth, clenching her sister's shoulders all the more."Stop bullshitting me...Wallace isn't here so talk to me...I know there is something wrong."___

_Ellen's frown faltered as her sad eyes began to mist with tears. "I don't want you involved...I don't want you getting hurt."___

_The elder twin eyed her sister warily. "Anything that deals with you automatically makes me involved. So...either you start talking or I will ask Wallace myself."___

_Ellen felt paralyzing fear grip her heart as her eyes widened in horror. "Don't do that!"___

_Emily took a small step back at the outburst but quickly regained her composure. "Well talk to me then...is Walace hurting you?"_  
_  
__The elder blonde's question was answered as her sister choked on a sob and downcast her head to the floor in shame. Emily delicately took a hold of her sister's chin, raising her head to see her twin's pale tear stained face.___

_"Please talk to me...I can't help you if you don't tell me what's going on. "___

_"You can't help me...if I leave him he will kill me." Ellen turned her head away from her twin's inquiring eyes. "If I stay...he still may possibly kill me."___

_Emily clenched her jaw at her sister's statement and she could feel her blood boiling. "Tell me what's going on."___

_Ellen chewed on her bottom lip before turning her head to look at her twin. "I found out that Wallace isn't who he say he is."___

_Emily frowned. "What do you mean?"___

_"You know how he goes on about running his own trucking company?"___

_Emily slowly nodded her head, urging her sister to continue.___

_"It's a cover up...he's using his trucks to ship drugs all over Japan."___

_At this, the elder twin's jaw dropped and she nearly began sputtering. "He's trafficking? Are you sure?"___

_"I'm possitive...I've been overhearing some of his conversations with his business partners."___

_"Oh my God...so he is hurting you because you found out?"___

_Ellen shook her head. "No...for another reason."___

_Emily frowned deeply. "What else is there?"___

_"I walked in on him snorting cocaine. I got mad and told him that I was taking the girls and leaving him. He blew up and jumped on me and started beating my head into the ground and told me that if I left he would kill me...so I didn't leave. He has been putting his hands on me ever since."___

_"You have to get out of there...you and the girls are more than welcome to stay with us."___

_"I cant ...I don't want you or your family getting involved...I don't want him coming after you guys for my sake. I can handle this."___

_"Letting him beat the shit out of you isn't dealing with anything. What about the girls?"___

_"The girls are fine...he hasn't done anything to them. I don't care what he does to me...just as long as he doesn't touch my girls I will be alright."___

_Emily shook her head in disdain. "What makes you think that he hasn't touched them or won't in the future."___

_"Because he loves them."___

_"I thought he loved you too."___

_Ellen frowned. "He does love me!"___

_"Than why is he hurting you? You don't deserve to be treated like that; you need to take the girls and leave."___

_Ellen shook her head. "No, I cant! I can't leave him...I know I can help him. He needs me to fix him."___

_Emily had to stop herself from slapping the shit out of her sister; this woman has completely lost her mind!___

_"Who are you?"___

_Ellen leaned back from her sister startled. She frowned deeply and cocked her to the side. "What is that suppose to mean?"___

_"The Ellen that I know wouldn't let some man put their hands on her...dad taught you better than this; leave him."___

_"You don't know what the fuck you are talking about! This is my life; I can handle this. Stay out of it!" Snapped Ellen as she turned away from her sister and left the room.___

_Emily sighed heavily, running a hand through her blonde locks. "Well...that was just fucking awesome!" She muttered before leaving the room as well to check on the kids._

_**-/-/-/-End Flashback-/-/-/-**_

After that incident Emily hadn't seen or heard from Ellen in weeks. Wallace and her nieces still came over for their weekly dinners but Ellen refused to come and always made an excuse for her absence which was spoken through Wallace, who as well didn't know why his girlfriend was avoiding her twin.

Emily began to regret confronting her sister about the domestic violence she was going through and she began to miss her other half dearly.

Though, all of that came to a halt when the eldest twin was woken up in the middle of the night with a phone call.

_**-\-\-\-Flashback-\-\-\-**_

_Emily rolled over groggily, clumsily grabbing a hold of the telephone that was shrilling upon her nightstand. Once she snatched the phone up,it took her a moment to push the right button to receive the call.___

_"Hello?"___

_**"Emily?"**___

_Emily furrowed her brows slightly. "Ellen?"___

_**"Hey...c-can you come get me?"**___

_Emily immediately rose up from the bed, all evidence of being sleepy completely vanished from her face. Something was wrong and her sister's trembling voice didn't ease her worries in the least.___

_"What's going on?"___

_**"Wallace and I got into a fight...a-and Amara got hurt...t-there's so much b-blood."**___

_Fear gripped Emily's heart as she hurriedly got dressed and was already walking towards the door with her car keys in hand. "Calm down Ellen...I'm on my way...just stay calm."___

_With that said, Emily hung up the cordless phone and tossed it on the couch as she ran out of the house; leaving her husband and daughter sleeping soundly._

_-\-\-\-\-\-\-__  
__Emily nearly jumped out of her vehicle before completely stopping the car and bolted to the front door of her sister's home. She pounded on the door madly before grabbing the door knob and throwing the door open.___

_The sight that had greeted her caused her stomach to turn and her heart nearly stopped. The once nicely furnished living room was in shambles; couches and coffee table turned over, broken lamps and picture frames littering the floor. Though, the sight that scared her the most was seeing Amara lying unconscious in her mother's arms, the both of them drenched in the child's blood. Her younger niece Serena was eerily quiet as she sat near a turned over sofa, crystalline eyes staring blankly at her sister.___

_Snapping out of her trance, Emily briskly made her way across the living room and knelt down in front of her spaced out twin as she hummed softly and slowly rocked Amara back and forth within her arms.___

_She placed a hand upon her sister's shoulder, causing the distraught mother to break from her trance.___

_"Jesus Ellen, what the hell happened?" Questioned the elder twin as she quickly checked for a pulse on her unconscious niece.___

_Ellen let a few tears roll down her heavily bruised cheek as she ran her fingers through her daughter's blood drenched locks._

_"I had went to the store to get some groceries for the house and I told Wallace to watch the kids...I get back and that bastard was snorting lines right in front of them. I flipped out and told him to get out of my house...that I was done and never wanted to see him again. He got mad and jumped on me an started beating on me in front of the girls. Serena was a sleep on the couch but Amara was sitting right there...well Amara saw him hurting me and jumped in to stop him. He shoved her back and she fell and hit her head on the coffee table and all of this blood started gushing everywhere! Wallace freaked and left...a-and I called you."___

_Emily growled as she helped her sister stand with her niece and moved towards Serena to scoop the three year old child up. As much as the woman wanted to scream and yell and cause physical damage upon the man, she had to focus on her niece whom was losing a lot of blood and may have serious head trauma.___

_"We have to go...Amara needs to go to the hospital." She paused and looked at her twin. "You guys are not coming back here...you are going to stay with me and Ron."___

_"I can't."___

_"Yes the fuck you can! Open your eyes Ellen. You have a unconscious child in your arms bleeding to death, what more do you need to realize Wallace isn't good for you or your children."___

_Ellen sniffled, unable to stop the tears from forming. "I can't just up and leave him...I have to help him get better."___

_Emily growled lowly, grabbing a tight hold of her sister's arm and forcing her to move forward and towards the front door. The elder twin had had enough of her crazy ass sister and she had to get a handle on thIs situation before her niece dies in her sister's trembling arms.___

_"I dont' know what the hell is wrong with you but I do know that if we don't get Amara to a hospital she may die. Do you want that?"___

_The mother of two quickly shook her head. "Of course not!"_

_"Sure as hell fooled me." muttered Emily darkly.___

_"What the hell is that suppose to mean?" Snapped Ellen in outrage.___

_"You're living in the house with a man that is selling an using narcotics. You're letting that same man beat the shit__out of you and that very same man that you love so fucking much has your child unconscious with blood pouring out of her head! Wake the fuck up Ellen! This is not a game, the kids you claim you love so goddamn much are in danger and all you can worry about is that bastard and what he needs and wants. Worry about yourself and your damn kids for once!" Emily finished her rampage with her eyes heated and breathing heavily. Holding Serena tighter to her, she walked out of the front door and advanced to the car to place the toddler in the back seat.___

_Ellen stared after her sister in stunned silence before lowering her eyes to her child that laid within her arms. She couldn't stop the tears that shed from her eyes as she brushed the blood soaked bangs from her daughter's face.___

_Her sister was right...she had to leave or he would eventually kill them. Biting on her bottom lip, the younger twin held her child closer to herself and made her way to her twin's car; she had to put herself and her children before the love of her life.___

_Ellen decided against laying Amara in the back seat with her sister and instead climbed into the front seat, keeping her eldest daughter clutched tightly within her arms. Slowly running her tongue along her bruised lips, the mother of two gave a small glance towards her twin as the woman began backing her vehicle out of the driveway.___

_"I'm going to take the girls and stay with you guys for a little while...at least until I can save up enough to get any own place._"

_Emily arched a brow in surprise, she had really expected her sister to be more stubborn and to keep herself locked within denial. Though as she looked at her twin's teary eyes staring down at Amara's face, Emily swallowed down a smart ass comment that had come to mind and gently placed a hand upon her sister's shoulder.___

_"Stay as long as you need too."_

_**-/-/-/-End Flashback-/-/-/-**_

Amara had suffered a minor concussion and received 4 staples to the back of her head that uneventful evening. Once the child was deemed to make a full recovery, Ellen being true to her word had gone home with her twin to stay.

Several weeks had gone by and Wallace had attempted to make phone calls and even emails to Ellen but she wisely didn't answer his calls and deleted his emails with even reading them. For the first time in a long time her sole attention was on her girls and her job as a physical therapist.

Her dull eyes became bright with life again and her ever glowing smile returned to her bruise free face once more. Though after a few mere weeks, Ellen came bounding into the room and pounced on the couch beside her sister like a teenager, grinning from ear to ear.

_**-/-/-/-Flashback-/-/-/-**_

_"Oh my God Emily, you won't believe what happened?" Exclaimed Ellen.___

_Emily arched a brow, placing her Cosmos magazine down. "What happened?"___

_"I finally talked to Wallace today...he is giving everything up for me!"___

_Emily frowned deeply and eyed her sister warily. "You spoke to him?"___

_Ellen's grin faltered slightly and settled with a small smile. "Yes...we talked about a lot of things. He said that he is going to stop using drugs and is going into rehab...he said he that is going to give up selling drugs...that the girls and I are more important to him and that he misses us."___

_Emily snorted, picking up her magazine and began flipping through it. "You actually believe that?"__  
_  
_"Yes I do..he is going to do his last deal in two weeks and sell everything he got." The younger twin scooted closer to her sisiter. "If he does this...we will be millionaires."___

_"So this is all about the money?"___

_"No its not about the damn money! I want my family back, I miss him...the girls miss him. He even wants to marry me...he said that he is going to take care of us and that I won't have to work anymore."___

_"That's bullshit..he is just telling you what you want to hear so you will come back to him."___

_Ellen narrowed her eyes dangerously close, lips curling back into a snarl. "Why do you always doubt me?"___

_Emily shrugged her shoulders, flipping to another page in her magazine. "Because you always make poor decisions."___

_Hurt flashed in Ellen's eyes momentarily before a frown marred her pretty features as she balled her small hands up into tight fists. "Fuck you Emily!" Snapped the younger twin as she spun on her heels and made her way out of the room.___

_"Well you shouldn't of asked!" Snapped back Emily, tossing the now unwanted magazine on the coffee table. With an exasperated sigh, the blonde stood abruptly from the couch and decided that she needed to take a walk._

_**-/-/-/-End Flashback-/-/-/-**_

Emily sighed heavily as she ran a shaky hand down her unearthly pale and pasty skin, taking a large swig out of a half empty bottle of some cheap vodka.

Her face scrunched up slightly at the burning bitter taste but she welcomed the sensation openly. Analyzing the memory through her hazy mind, the washed up blonde realized that she had been a total bitch to her twin.

There were so many ways she could have handled that situation...to have handled that conversation...but no...all she had done was to help push her twin back into the arms of that bastard.

She knew she had fucked up when her twin had begun to avoid her once more and spent long hours talking on the phone with Wallace as the prick told her sweet lies.

Emily couldn't stand it and she had devised the perfect plan to finally rid that bastard from her sister's life.

_**-/-/-/-Flahshback-/-/-/-**_

_Emily looked up at the police precinct, eyeing the large brick building with a grin. She quickly made her way up small amount of steps to reach her destination.___

_She opened the front glass door and made her way inside, walking up to the police officer at the front desk.___

_"Excuse me Officer, I need to talk to someone."___

_The young Officer raised his head, midnight blue eyes staring down at Emily with an arched ebony brow in curiosity. His head was tilted slightly to the side, his short ebony locks hanging wildly in his stunning eyes.___

_"What can I help you with ma'am?"___

_Emily cleared her throat in slight embarrassment as she realized that she was staring. She ran a hand through her blonde bangs and smiled at the Officer kindly, eyeing his badge for a name.__  
_  
_"Well Officer Chiba, I have some information about a drug deal that is to go down in two weeks."___

_At this, both of the cop's brows raised in curiosity, a small smirk coming across his handsome face. "Really now, do you have any names of the culprits, or are you sending me on a wild goose hunt?"___

_Emily frowned slightly as she heard the sarcasm in his voice quite clearly. "As a matter of fact, I know the ring leader personally."___

_"Name?" Questioned the Officer as he took a casual sip of his coffee.___

_"Wallace Tenoh."___

_The cop choked on his hot drink and looked upon the petite blonde in surprise. "Excuse me?"___

_"I didn't stutter...I said his name is Wallace Tenoh."___

_The cop quickly cleaned his mouth of coffee residue with the sleeve of his shirt and straightened quickly. "I don't believe I caught your name ma'am."___

_"Emily Aino...but I would like to keep my identity disclosed."___

_"I understand Ms. Aino."___

_"Mrs."___

_"Right...Mrs. Aino, please follow me to my office."_

_Emily nodded and followed, eyeing other Officers as they sat behind their computer desks, typing in their reports and such. She soon found herself in a small office at the back of the precinct and she took a seat as Officer Chiba followed suit.___

_"How do you know Wallace?"___

_"He dates my twin sister...and is the father of my two nieces." Replied Emily with distaste apparent on her features.___

_The cop frowned slightly. "Why are you turning him in?"___

_"Because my sister deserves better...he is nothing more than a washed up drug addict...he beats her...and he already hurt one of my nieces. I'll be damned if he hurts them again."___

_"I see...now are you sure about this deal?"___

_"I am absolutely positive. His trucking company is a cover up for his trafficking...I know this because my sister told me first hand."___

_Once again the Officer frowned. "Why is your sister not the one in here telling me all of this?"___

_"Because she would never tell on him...plus he is feeding her sweet lies. Telling her that this is the last deal...that he is finally going to go to rehab. She wants to go back to him and marry him."___

_"What if he speaks the truth?"_

_"Wallace will never change! They're whole relationship has been a lie...hell she just found out what he does for a living just a few months ago and they've been together for years. Wallace will be the death of my sister and those girls if I don't take a stand and do something."_  
_  
__"So putting him in jail is going to resolve everything?"___

_"For the time being at least."___

_The Officer eyed the woman before him warily...for some strange reason he felt that this was wrong...that one day he would regret this decision, but quickly shook off the feeling. He had been wanting to bust Wallace for years and he now had the opportunity handed to him on a silver platter. This bust could jump him up even higher in his career and he'd be damned if he was going to let this slip through his fingers...besides, he wanted his boys to be proud of their father.___

_Letting a boyish grin fall upon his face, the cop leaned back in his seat. "Tell me everything you know."_

_**-\-\-\-End Flashback-\-\-\-**_

Emily laughed bitterly at the memory...at that point and time she had really thought that she had finally trapped Wallace and had finally pushed the destructive man away from her sister and 2 nieces. The son of a bitch was caught red handed with massive amounts of narcotics...but no...of course things didn't work out like she wanted...that plan had completely blown up in her face by a ten-fold.

That bastard's 25 year sentence was dropped to merely a year and the mother fucker was out on parole in 6 months. Oh...life was such a bitch! To make matters worse...Ellen had run off with Wallace one weekend and gotten married.

Emily Aino had lost her sister and in some twisted way of fate...she had pushed her sister right into the devil's arms and it made her soul scream in agony.

Ellen had stopped coming around and soon Wallace and the girls stopped coming over as well. Nearly two years had gone by before Emily finally heard from her sister; a phone call that had changed her life forever...a phone call that was Ellen's last.

_**-\-\-\-Flashback-\-\-\-**_

_Emily yawned tiredly, looking around her in slight confusion as she soon realized that she fell asleep on the couch. She lazily pulled her Cosmos magazine off of her chest and sat up, mumbling under her breathe as the remote control fell off her lap and clattered to the floor. She leaned down and grabbed the remote and tossed it on the coffee table and stood erect, stretching and popping her back in the process.___

_Her head suddenly snapped to the left as she heard her house phone ring and she furrowed her brows in confusion, looking down at he watch.___

_"It's nearly four in the morning...who the hell would be calling at this time." Grumbled the blonde as she trudged her way towards the phone. She snatched the cordless phone from its host, clicking the answer button and placing the phone to her ear.__  
_  
_"Hello?" Snapped Emily rudely._

**"...Em?"**

_Emily knitted her brows together. "Ellen?"_

**"...Yea...its me..."**

_The eldest twin frowned deeply, her sister's shaky voice unnerving her. "What's going on...why do you sound like that?"__  
_  
**Ellen sniffled. "I should have listened to you."**

_"What are you talking about?"_

**"Wallace...he's never going to change..."**

_Emily gripped the phone tightly. "Has he been hurting you again?" The eldest twin felt her heart clench within her chest as she heard her sister choke on a sob.___

_**"He...he's worse now than he was before jail. He's using again, he puts his hands on me...and now he's starting to hurt the girls...I walked in on him holding Serena up against the wall by the throat and was screaming in her face like a lunatic earlier today. I intervened and he got mad and punched me in the face. I...I can't do this anymore, Em. I...I packed some stuff for me and the girls...I think I'm going to stay in a hotel for a few nights."**__**  
**__  
__"You are not staying in a hotel, get your stuff and you and the girls come over here, I'll be waiting for you."___

_**Ellen sniffled once more. "O-okay, I'll be there in a few...thanks Emily."**___

_Emily smiled, gripping the phone a little more tightly. "No problem sis...just get here soon." With that said, the phone went dead._

_**-\-\-\-End Flashback-\-\-\-**_

Emily sat on the couch the entire night, clutching the house phone within her hands tightly; Ellen and the girls never showed up. At 8am, Emily received the devastating news that her sister had died in tragic car accident and all the blonde could do was scream a blood curdling scream for the loss of her sister.

Right from the jump, Emily knew that Wallace was somehow involved in her sister's death, something in her gut was telling her that the sleazy bastard was at fault. Why was Ellen the only one in the vehicle when Amara and Serena should have been in the vehicle as well...why wasn't there any belongings within the vehicle either...no ...purse?

Something was definitely not right!

A few days later, Ellen's funeral was held and do to the extent of her injuries, she was given a closed casket ceremony. The ceremony went by as a blur as the grief stricken twin alternated between staring at her sister's casket and her nieces' solemn stares and Wallace's blank gaze.

After the service was over, the casket was taken to the burial site where Ellen was put to eternal rest. As everyone left to go to the meeting spot to eat, Emily stayed behind, staring down at the casket that had just recently been lowered.

_**-\-\-\-Flashback-\-\-\-**_

_"I'm so sorry Ellen." Whispered Emily as she felt the tears trickle down the sides of her face.___

_"I...I should of been more supportive...I...I shouldn't have done things behind your back...I..."___

_Emily's voice cracked as she choked on a sob and she clutched the white rose she held in her hand tightly. She suddenly tossed the rose and silently watched as the elegant flower land gracefully on top of the mahogany casket.___

_"I should have been a better sister...just...just know that you will be deeply missed and that I love you." The blonde brushed the tears from her eyes and jumped suddenly at the unexpected voice that came beside her.___

_"I can't believe that she's really gone." Whispered Wallace softly._  
_  
__Emily clenched her fists and glared at the ground...how dare this bastard interrupt her moment with her sister!___

_"Your the reason why she's down there."___

_Wallace's downcast eyes widened in shook as he gaped at his deceased wife's sister. "Excuse me?"___

_Emily shifted a cold glare upon dirty blonde haired man. "I know that this was your fault...I know that she died because of you!"___

_Wallace's shocked expression immediately morphed into anger. "You don't know what the fuck you're talking about!"___

_Wallace was once again stunned stupid as Emily reared back and slapped him across the face as hard as she could.___

_"I do know what I'm talking about...I may not be able to prove it, but I know you were the cause of sister's death and I pray that God has mercy on your soul when you burn in hell you bastard!" Yelled Ellen, before spinning on her heels and stalking away, leaving a stupefied Wallace in her wake.__  
_  
_**-\-\-\-End Flashback-\-\-\-**_

From that day forward, Emily's life began spiraling downwards as she feel into a deep dark depression. The more she thought upon her sister's death, the more the guilt began to cloud her mind, making her whither up within her own self remorse.

She began to close herself off from her husband and her daughter, consuming as herself with alcohol and anti-depressants. Day by day the woman could feel that she was loosing herself piece by piece and she came to the conclusion that she didn't want to be the house wife any more...that was what Ellen wanted; but Emily wanted to forget her worries and drink her problems away. She didn't deserve this perfect life...she didn't deserve such happiness because she was the cause of her sister's death by practically shoving the woman into devil's grasp; so the self destruction began.

Soon the grieving blonde began to divulge her self in to reckless partying and sleeping around with random women until she had met Stacy, the foxy brunette that grabbed her attention the moment she laid eyes on her. She and Stacy had hit it off very quickly and Emily had soon found her heart stolen by the vixen that came into her life.

It wasn't long before the blonde devised a plan to get the woman hired in as her husband's secretary. The perfect way to keep tabs on her husband and still have her fun on the side. Days soon turned into weeks and weeks into months and before she knew it, Emily realized that she had been deceiving her husband for two years.

The hiding and the sneaking around wasn't fun anymore and it was time to bring the truth to the surface. So she had let herself get caught, allowing Ronnie to walk in after just finishing a love making session with Stacy.

She knew that the act was cruel, but at the time she didn't care. All she had cared about was getting what she wanted and that was a divorce and a divorce is what she got...and at the perfect time. Emily had just signed a contract with a producer to star in a new show called Sailor V; the catch, she would have to move to London, New England.

To say the least, after the bedroom incident, Ronnie didn't hesitate in signing the divorce papers. Within a month, Emily, Stacy, and Mina moved to London to begin a new life.

At first everything was great, the show was a hit success, money was pouring in by the loads and they were filthy rich. Though the problems began to occur when Stacy would complain about Mina...how her and Emily couldn't go out as much because of Mina or how Emily would spend too much time with her daughter instead of her.

Peaceful times filled with laughter soon turned into heated arguments filled with hurtful words that couldn't be taken back. One day Stacy gave Emily the ultimatum, it was either her or Mina and without a second thought, the blonde chose her daughter. Stacy was furiously and left Emily for good...and although the blonde knew she had made the right choice, her broken heart wouldn't allow it.

Soon the blonde found herself in the fast life of drinking and snorting cocaine and her sadness quickly turned to anger, the destructive emotion pointed directly at her unknowing daughter. Yelling and screaming at her only child over mediocre things became a regular thing that quickly turned into lashing out at the poor child and striking her. When the child didn't do something right, she would deny the child of food and water.

Her skills as a actress dropped significantly and she was forced to be placed on probation from the set until she omits herself into rehab after she had come on set high off her ass and broke a champagne bottle and attempted to stab her hair stylist in the face.

Emily's life had definitely spiraled down into a dark hole and couldn't figure out what to do with herself. She ruined her relationship with her husband for a selfish bitch, her daughter most likely hated her for all the wrong she had done to the innocent girl...and now she was nothing more than a trashy coke head whore...she was the type of girl she had never thought she would be...and never wanted to be.

Emily ran a trembling hand down her sicly pale face as tears flooded her eyes. She had completely let her life get out of control and if she continued to let her life fall...she knew she would end up dead.

The blonde sat up slowly, letting a hand run through her disheveled locks. She slowly looked around her messy condo and down at her disheveled clothing.

This had to stop.

All the self loathing...all the partying...the drugs and the alcohol abuse...

It all just needed to stop.

Emily cast her eyes towards the side table beside her daughter's bed. She raised the picture frame to reveal a family photo of her, Ronnie and Mina. The blonde smiled sadly as he brushed her thumb over Mina's smiling face and made a silent vow.

She would better her life for her little girl...for Mina.

Emily placed the picture frame down gently on the table and stood to her feet. She had some phone calls to make to check out the rehab clinics within her area...as well...she had a condo that needed some serious cleaning; including herself.

Author: Well that's all for now...did have a hard time writing this...probably because I was dealing with a situation along the lines of this particular chapter. N E Ways, I hoped you enjoyed, I really wanted to get this chapter out of the way so I can get the story moving along again. I will admit I do have a few more things I want to happen before the girls do eventually become teenagers, but I will let you know that the therapy session will be coming into play soon ^_^


	30. B2: Chapter 14

Author: What's up guys, I know its been a while but I've been stuck on this chapter for the longest trying to decide what I want to happen next and how to play it out. On top of that I had lost the first half of the chapter do to my phone malfunctioning...so you could imagine I was pissed that I had to try and remember what I had plotted and written ***sigh*** its a bit long, but oh well, I'm sure you guys wont complain lol ^_^

Disclaimer: Don't own SM

Amara grinned at herself within her bathroom mirror after she finished cleaning her face from any excess toothpaste that had once decorated the corners of her mouth. Jumping down from the sink, the short haired blonde readjusted her plain black t-shirt and made her way into her bedroom. Upon entry she spotted her little sister lying across her bed, lazily thumbing through one of her motor cross magazines.

The small blonde grinned as she looked up at her elder sister. "Ready for your first race?"

Amara grinned, making her way over to her dresser and picking up her comb. "I was born ready!"

Serena rolled her eyes, laying the magazine down and propping her chin upon her laced hands. "Think you will win?"

The tomboy looked at her sister incredulously. "Uh...duh!"

Serena giggled. "You could lose you know."

"Psh" muttered Amara as she quickly combed her hair neatly and then shook her head to make her hair fall wildly around her head. Serena rolled her eyes at her sister's grooming technique and sat up on the bed.

"You think the police are going to be there?"

"Most likely."

Serena sighed. "How long are they going to be following us around; its getting pretty annoying seeing them everywhere...especially at school."

Amara shrugged her shoulders in return. "I don't know...until they catch Dad I guess."

"So that must mean never."

Amara laughed. "They'll find him, Sere."

"Its been months and they haven't found anything!"

"It takes time."

"They need to work faster than...for all we know Dad can be watching us right now. "

Amara shivered at the thought and frowned at her sister through her vanity mirror. "Don't say stuff like that."

"Its the truth, he did that before."

"And that's the creepy part about it."

"Breakfast is ready girls!" came Elaine's voice from the stairway.

Amara turned towards her sister as the small blonde hoisted herself from the bed. "Look, don't worry about Dad because even if he is watching us, we have too many people around to protect us...he will never put his hands on us again."

Serena stared up at her sister warily, desperately trying to find comfort in the older girl's words, but to no avail. Deep down she knew that if their father wanted them, than he was pretty damn sure going to get them. Though the small blonde placed a small smile on her face to disregard her own dark thoughts and latched herself upon her sister's arm.

"I guess you're right, now come on before our food gets cold!"

-/-/-/-/-/-

As the girls made their way into the kitchen, they both spotted Elaine at the counter plating their food and Ken sitting at the table, quietly reading a newspaper.

"Morning girls!" Replied Elaine cheerily as she spotted the girls from the corner of her eye.

"Morning!" They replied in unison as they quickly found their seat at the table.

Ken folded up his paper and laid it down upon the table as he readjusted his glasses and turned his attention onto Amara.

"Ready for your race?"

"I'm ready to be the first one to cross the finish line! I already know I'm going to win."

Ken snickered ruffling the child's bangs affectionately. "Its good to have confidence, just don't be so cocky."

"How am I being cocky when I speak the truth?"

Ken rolled his eyes knowing how arrogant the short haired blonde can be and decided to ignore the remark as his wife placed a plate full of breakfast essentials down in front of him. Shifting his gaze to Serena, he couldn't help but shake his head as he spotted the girl already wolfing down her food.

Elaine took her usual seat across from her husband and smiled warmly, rubbing her swollen belly as she felt butterflies in her stomach. Serena paused in mid bite as she watched Elaine and she suddenly grinned.

"Did the baby move?"

Elaine nodded with a grin of her own. "I think it did."

"When will I be able to feel it?" Questioned the small blonde.

"A few more weeks and you will be able to feel it kick."

"And we will find out that I'm having a little sister right?"

Amara frowned at her sister. "Its a boy, Serena."

Elaine giggled. "Yes we will find out if the baby is a boy or a girl, next week." The lavender haired woman cleaned the corners of her mouth with a napkin before shifting in her seat slightly, looking up at her husband.

"We have a change of plans."

Ken arched a brow. "Which is?"

"You and Amara can go on ahead with out us. Serena and I have to go pick up Rei and Chad."

"Why? Is Charles not going?"

"He can't, his car won't start."

"Well, tell him to ride with you guys, I can take a look at his car after the race."

"Okay, I will call him before we leave then."

"Alright." Replied Ken as he scooted his seat back and stood to his feet. "Come on, Amara."

Amara quickly pushed her seat back, picking up her empty plate as well. The duo both placed their dishes in the sink before bidding Serena and Elaine goodbye and exiting the house. The remaining two females finished their meals and as Elaine went off to make a phone call and clean the dishes, Serena cleaned up the kitchen table and put the dishes away. Once all was done, the both of them made their way out of the house, greeting the officer that sat outside in his police cruiser and took off to the shrine.

-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-

Rei bounded down the many steps of the shrine, spotting her grandfather underneath the hood of his car. The raven haired girl shifted her gaze up to the sky as she heard Deimos squawk and the child smiled as she saw both of her birds circle the sky above her head, than turned her attention back on her grandfather.

"Grandpa!"

Startled, the old man rammed his bald head into the hood of his car, causing his granddaughter's eyes to widen before she fell into a fit of giggles.

The old man frowned, sending a mock glare to the laughing child. "I see you find this amusing."

The raven nodded with a wide grin upon her face, causing the old man's frown and glare to falter slightly. "So, what is it that you need dear?"

Rei's grin fell as the child took a seat on the bottom steps behind her and crossed her arms over her chest. "I wanted to talk to you about something."

Grandpa Hino picked up a worn out rag and began cleaning the oil off his hands and face as he eyed his granddaughter curiously. "What's on your mind, child?"

Rei chewed on her bottom lip for a moment before responding. "I get the feeling that something is going to happen today...and it is not a good feeling."

Grandpa Hino frowned slightly, taking a seat on the steps beside Rei. "What do you mean?"

The raven shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know, I just have this feeling that something is going to go wrong today...and I had a dream last nite...but it doesn't make any sense."

"What happened in the dream?"

Rei furrowed her brows slightly. "I don't really know...I remember hearing a gunshot and someone started screaming." She frowned slightly trying to remember the dream clearly. "I also remember seeing someone get hit with something...like they were getting beat by a stick or something."

The old man frowned deeply before he sighed and ruffled Rei's bangs. "Looks like you have the gift."

Rei looked up at the old man curiously. "Gift?"

Grandpa Hino nodded in return. "Yes gift. Your mother was the priestess of this Shrine before she met your father. Many people from all over the world came here to see her because of her gift of foresight."

Rei furrowed her brows in confusion. "What does foresight mean?"

"The ability to predict the future. When your mother was your age, she used to have dreams and feelings, much like you are having."

"Wow!" Exclaimed Rei before frowning slightly. "So...what do I do?"

"What do you mean?"

"How can I stop the bad things from happening?"

"You can't stop the bad things from happening Rei, it's apart of life."

"Than what's the point of having this gift if I can't stop bad things from happening?"

"You aren't meant to stop what's happening...you are meant to help and comfort those that are affected by the bad things that are happening."

The old man slung an arm around the girl's shoulders and pulled her against his side. "Don't stress over it my dear, just keep your eyes open and be alert. Other than that, enjoy yourself today and have fun with your friends."

"Okay grandpa!"

The old man smiled and patted the child upon the head, just as he spotted Elaine pulling up in her car.

"Elaine's here, you and Chad get going. I will see you guys later."

Rei nodded, leaning over to give the old man a hug. "Thanks Grandpa...for everything!" Before the old man could get a word in, the raven jumped to her feet and bounded up the stairs to retrieve Chad.

Grandpa Hino stared after her until she was gone before he stood to his feet, running a hand over his shinning bald head. "You're turning out to be more like your mother everyday..." the old man frowned with a small shake of the head. "But that temper of yours definitely came from your father."

-/-/-/-/-/

Elaine shook her head with a giggle as she pitied Chad whom sat in between Rei and Serena in the backseat of her car as the two girls bantered back and forth with the occasional screeches of 'pyro' and 'meatball head'.

From the rear view mirror Elaine watched as Chad rolled his eyes with a small shake of the head, attempting to put a stop to the girls arguing. With another giggle, the lavender haired woman pulled into the parking lot of the Go-kart track and got a decent spot in the front.

As she unbuckled her seat belt, the pregnant woman was slightly surprised to see her best friend pull up beside her in her own vehicle. Rei and Serena squealed in unison as they both spotted Amy, Lita and Michelle in the car beside them.

Elaine waved Amelia over after she had gotten her group of three girls out of the car. The group of kids simultaneously swarmed together and began to chat and poor Chad sighed heavily, once again being the only male in the group. Though, that wasn't for long as the shaggy haired boy was pounced on from behind and a happy cry of "Darien!" from a certain meatball headed blonde was heard.

Chad quickly untangled himself from Darien's head lock and playfully shoved the boy back in the chest as he spotted Melvin and Andrew laughing on either side of the ebony haired boy; Damien Chiba trailing not to far behind them.

"I'm so glad you guys are here, I thought I was going to be stuck with all girls today." Replied Chad with a grin.

"What's the problem with that?" Yelled Rei, obviously offended by the comment.

Chad cringed shying his way behind Darien for some form of protection; everyone knew how Rei could get.

"Nothing! After hearing you and Serena yelling throughout the whole car ride I was ready to start banging my head against something."

"Hey! It wasn't that bad!" Prodded Serena with a cute pout on her face.

Lita giggled, draping her arms around both Serena's and Rei's shoulders. "Oh yea, you two are very bad. Y'all fight like a old married couple!"

"Do not!" The both cried in unison.

"Oh yes you do." Piped in Amy as she readjusted her reading glasses on her face and flipped a page in a massive chemistry book she was holding.

"You know its bad if Amy agrees." Replied Andrew in a sing-song way that caused Rei and Serena to pout pitifully. Serena suddenly made her way over to Darien and clung onto his arm, giving him her best puppy dog look, causing the boy to blush profusely.

"You don't agree with them, do you Dare?" Questioned the small blonde.

Darien quickly darted his eyes up to the sky, as if he were looking at something in the distance. "Of course not!"

"You're full of crap, Chiba!" Muttered Melvin with the roll of the eyes. As the group giggled,Darien glared at his friend with daggers, and Melvin realized some people were missing.

"Where's Molly, Mina and Amara?"

"Amara is with Ken, getting ready for the race and Mina's coming, they have to pick up Molly since her mom has to work at the jewlery store today." replied Serena

"So Elaine and Ken are cool with your uncle coming? Questoned Michelle, finally joining the conversation.

"Yep, Ken invited Uncle Ronnie himself."

Just as Michelle was going to comment on it, she spotted Mina, Molly and Ronnie getting out of a truck. "There they go now."

Both Molly and Mina's faces lit up upon seeing their friends and quickly made their way to the group as Ronnie tried to keep up with them.

Elaine, Damien and Amelia greeted Ronnie and quickly ushered the group of kids inside and to their seats as Elaine excused herself to talk to Ken.

-\-\-\-\-\-\-

Amara adjusted the strap of her yellow gloves before running a hand through her blonde locks in boredom. Ken and his crew were currently looking over Amara's go-kart to make sure everything was good and working fine.

Finally fed up with standing around, the tomboy decided to go for a walk and to check out her competition. She checked out a couple of cars and crews though, she found herself stumbling upon one person she hadn't expected.

"What are doing here?"

Diamond turned around with a arrogant smirk forming on his face. "Well, well, well, look what we have here."

Amara narrowed her eyes. "What are you doing here?" She questioned again.

Diamond's smirk broadened. "Competing in this race, duh!" He replied, pointing down to his blue and black racing gear.

Amara frowned. "Since when do you race?"

"Since I was 5. Are you going to keep asking me questions or are you going to leave me alone so I can get ready?"

The tomboy gritted her teeth and felt her hands clench as she desperately wanted to sock the smartass in his mouth. Though, gaining control of her emotions, the blonde turned away and left the area with one goal in mind; win the race to wipe that cocky smirk of that brat's face.

-\-\-\-\-\-

Elaine quickly spotted her husband crouched down in front of Amara's vehicle, checking the pressure of her tires. With a small smile, the lavender haired woman quietly walked up behind her oblivious husband and covered his eyes with her soft hands.

"Guess who?" She replied, trying to mask her voice by making it a bit husky and failed miserably.

"The love of my life!" replied Ken without a hitch and stood to his feet, pulling his wife into a tight embrace and planting a soft kiss upon her forehead. "Is everyone here?"

"Well Charles didn't come, he's determined to attempt to fix the car himself."

Ken rolled his eyes. "Now I see where Rei gets her stubbornness from."

Elaine giggled. "Ain't that the truth, so I guess you can head over there after the race and help him before he makes it worse. Oh and Ronnie did show up and is with the rest of the group. I already invited him and Mina over for dinner to nite."

"Uncle Ronnie is here?" Questioned Amara as she walked in on the middle of the conversation.

"Yep, he's here and so are all of your friends." Replied Elaine. Amara grinned as she felt the excitement welling up inside her, making her even more determined to win this race. Her foster mother leaned forward and ruffled her bangs, wishing her best of luck in the race before leaving to allow Ken and herself to finish getting ready.

-\-\-\-\-\-\-

Rei warily scanned the crowd from her spot within the stands of the go-kart track, still feeling very unsettled from her dream the night before. She nearly jumped out of her skin when Serena draped an arm around her shoulders as she was nibbling on a rather large bag of cotton candy.

"What's the matter, pyro?"

Rei felt her eyebrow twitch at the nickname. "Nothing, meatball head."

Serena in turn gazed upon her friend with a seriousness that took the raven by surprise. "Your lying, the moment we found our seats you've been looking around like you're expecting something bad to happen."

Now Rei was flabbergasted, not only had she not realized how observant Serena was, she really hadn't expected the girl to care that much. With a soft sigh, the raven turned from her friend, staring down at her clenched hands that lay in her lap.

"I had a bad dream last night...and I've got this feeling that's making my stomach turn..something is going to happen today and its not good at all."

Serena nodded slowly taking another bite of her pink cotton candy. "It could be gas."

Rei nearly fell out her seat from the comment and had to stop herself from slamming her fist down on top of the girl's head. Though the anger quickly washed away as she saw the humor completely written on the blonde's face and realized the girl was only trying to make light of the situation.

"Its not gas meatball head!"

Serena giggled. "I think you are worrying for no reason...I mean its a beautiful day, its Amara's first big race and all of us are together! Everything is going to be okay."

Rei smiled, finding comfort within the girl's words but there was still that nagging voice in the back of her mind telling her not to let her guard down.

-\-\-\-\-\-\-

Amara grinned as she felt the adrenaline pumping through her veins as she made her way over to her yellow go-kart with 2 black pin strips coming up from the hood of the car to the rear. Just as she was about to step in she was roughly shoved from behind and with anger burning in her eyes, the tomboy turned to a grinning Diamond making his way past her.

Just as she about to make her way over to him to give her a piece of her mind, she felt a hand lay gently upon her shoulder. Startled, Amara turned, seeing Ken standing beside her.

"Don't...beat him in this race if you want to get back at him."

Amara frowned but nodded, grabbing her helmet from her seat and placed it on her head and climbed into the vehicle. As she was buckling her seat belt, Ken squatted down to give the girl some last minute encouragement.

"You got this, just remember what we practiced...and don't forget to have fun!"

Amara grinned, gripping both gloved hands on the steering wheel. "Oh, I will definitely have fun."

Ken narrowed his eyes slightly, wondering if there was any devious intentions behind those words but didn't get the chance to dwell on it as the announcer called for everyone but the racers to remove themselves from the track. Amara gritted her teeth as she glared at the dark blue car that contained Diamond before looking up and nearly choking on her spit. She leaned forward, seat belt straining against her chest as she began to blink rapidly.

"Dad?"

Standing straight ahead of her behind the fence that closed off the go-kart track from the parking lot stood Wallace Tenoh. His dirty blonde hair was tied back in a low ponytail as he let his tongue play with the tooth pick that was sticking out of his mouth. With his hands shoved deeply in his blue jean pockets, the ex convict smirked at his eldest child as her green eyes widened in shock and horror.

Amara could hear the gun shot sounding off, signaling the start of the race but she was far too focused on staring at the monster that was bent on ruining her and her sister's lives.

"AMARA!"

The blonde jumped, snapping out her reverie as she turned to Ken.

"The race started! GO!" yelled the man incredulously.

Amara looked around her seeing that she was the only car sitting on the track. She growled lowly under her breath looking back towards the fence to see that her father was no longer standing there.

"I must be seeing things." She muttered lowly before stomping on the gas to try and catch up all the time she wasted.

-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-

Serena took another large bite from her cotton candy, talking animatedly amongst her friends, one arm latched around Darien's arm. The ebony haired boy didn't seem to mind in the least as he took a bite of his own blue cotton candy as he talked to his friends as well.

Michelle whom sat right behind Serena grinned as she spotted Amara getting into her vehicle after glaring heatedly at Diamond. The violinist frowned tapping her best friend's little sister on the shoulder.

"Diamond races?"

Serena frowned slightly as their whole little group turned simultaneously towards the track as Diamond continued on his way to his own vehicle.

"I didn't know he drives go-karts too." Mumbled Serena.

"Well if Diamond's here...then that means Beryl's here too." Replied Lita with disgust.

"Are they really that bad?" Questioned Rei curiously, being that she and Chad were the only ones that didn't know the two heathens that well.

"I think Satan is their dad." murmured Molly from in between Melvin and Michelle.

"And Medusa is their mom." Replied Melvin with a snicker.

Mina turned in her seat from beside Andrew and looked up at her cousin. "Speaking of them, you know, you never did tell me how Diamond put that scar on your forehead."

Serena frowned, rubbing at the scar self consciously as she remembered that day quite clearly. "I head butted him in the face and broke his nose."

"It was awesome!" Chided in Amy from behind her textbook, causing the kids the laugh amongst themselves.

Mina leaned in a little closer to her cousin, eying the scar closely. "You know...that scar kind of looks like a sickle."

"A what?" Questioned Serena.

"No...it looks more like crescent." Replied Chad.

Serena covered her forehead with both hands and frowned deeply. "I hate it!"

Darien pulled both hands from the blonde's forehead and traced the scar with the tip of his finger lightly. "I don't...I like it...it looks good on you."

Serena blushed, turning from Darien slightly. "Really?"

"Ooooooh! Does Darien and Serena have a crush on each other?" Yelled Andrew with a devious grin.

"No!" The accused duo cried out in unison, causing the group to share another fit of laughter, especially when the two turned as red as a tomato at the accusation.

"Oh wow, speak of the devil." Whispered Lita as her eyes was gazing towards the entryway of the stands. The group turned and spotted Beryl holding the hand of a deathly pale woman and carefully escorting her up the steps and towards the very back where Dom and Sapphire sat.

"Who is that woman?" Questioned Michelle quietly.

"Her mom." Replied Andrew.

"Whats wrong with her? She looks sick." Said Rei.

"I don't know...I just know that she got some sort of disease and all of her hair fell out."

"Is that why she's wearing a bandana?" Questioned Chad.

"I guess so..I mean, I would if I lost all my hair." Responded Andrew, as he ran a hand through his short blonde locks, unable to imagine himself completely bald.

Serena kept her gaze locked upon Beryl and her mother and watched as the red head gently helped her mother take her seat and quickly sat down beside her and wrapped both arms around her mother's waist, leaning her head again the woman's shoulder. Jen wrapped an arm around her daughter's shoulders, pulling the girl closer to her and murmured something in her ear causing Beryl to smile brightly.

"She doesn't seem so bad when she actually smiles instead of frowning all the time." Said Serena softly. "I wonder if that's why she and Diamond are so mean because their mother is sick."

"There's no telling...I think they were born evil." Griped Melvin as he pushed his thick glasses up on his face.

"Well, what about their little brother?"

"Sapphire? He isn't anything like them. He's quiet and keeps to himself." Said Michelle.

"Hey...how come that guy has a gun?" Asked Mina curiously as she looked back down towards the race track.

Rei snapped her head towards the track, eying the chrome revolver; mind going back to the dream from the night before.

"He's going to shoot it up in the air to start the race probably." Replied Lita as her attention was drawn to the gun wielding man standing in front of the starting line.

"How do you know?" Asked Darien.

"I seen it on TV. The guy shot a gun to start a track competition."

Before anyone else could speak, the gun sounded off and a loud piercing scream rung out into the air.

-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-

Elaine smiled brightly, patting her swollen belly after telling Ronnie and Damien about her unexpected pregnancy and Amara's and Serena's reaction towards the information. Just as she was about to ask Amelia a question, a piercing scream that made the hair on the back of her neck stand on end erupted, causing the group of four adults to jump and snap their head towards the kids.

Elaine's eyes widened as they fell on Serena whom was curled up in a fetal position and her hands clenching her hair painfully tight as she continued to scream her lungs out. All of Serena's friends were leaning away from her with eyes as wide as saucers, completely stunned and unsure of what the hell was going on.

Elaine stood abruptly, making her way through the kids and into the center to bend down at eye level with the screaming child. The lavender woman tried talking to the child and attempted to pry the girl's fingers from her blonde locks, though it as all in vain.

"You two take her out of here, Damien and I will stay with the rest of the kids." Replied Amelia as she glared at all the people whom was staring at them amongst the bleachers around them.

Ronnie nodded, scooping his niece up into his arms and followed Elaine as the woman lead the way. Amelia and Damien quickly got the kids settled down and had them draw their attention to the race as Amara was rapidly passing her competition in a comeback.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Elaine quickly lead Ronnie and the still screaming Serena to Ken's office within the garage. Ronnie placed his niece down on a leather chair that was place in front of Ken's large mahogany computer desk.

Once seated, the blonde quickly withdrew within herself, drawing her knees up to her chest and wrapping shaky arms around them. She buried her face into her knees, beginning to rock back and forth slowly and mumbling something incoherent under her breath.

Elaine ran a shaky hand through her locks as she stared down at the rapidly paling child in confusion and concern. "What the hell was that about?"

Ronnie shook his head with wide eyes. "I don't know...you've never seen her do this before?"

The lavender haired woman shook her head, completely exasperated. "No...she's never done this before...I mean...she was fine a minute ago...what happened?"

Ronnie shrugged his shoulders before narrowing his eyes slightly at his niece. "Do you hear that...she's mumbling something."

Elaine furrowed her brows as the lawyer squatted down and leaned in closer to the small blonde. "What is she saying?"

Ronnie frowned slightly as he listened closely before turning to the pregnant woman behind him. "It...it sounds like she's saying "I didn't mean it...I had to make him stop."

The man stood to his feet, burying his hands deep within his pants pockets. "Who is this guy she is talking about...what did she stop him from doing and what did she do that she didn't mean?"

Elaine shook her head slowly from side to side, completely stumped. "I don't know...she's never said anything like that before. The only person I think she could be talking about is her father."

Ronnie snapped his head towards the lavender haired woman sharply. "Wallace? What does he have to do with all of this?"

Elaine's face fell as she stared at the man before her. "You don't know why Serena and Amara are in mine and my husband's custody?"

Ronnie tuned away slightly. "No, I don't know the reason...I know Wallace sold dope...I figured he finally got caught and the girls were put in foster care being that their mother is dead and they have no other family within Japan."

Elaine's jaw dropped. "Have you not been watching the news?"

"No...I really don't have much time for television. I perfer reading anyways...but why does that matter...what exactly has Wallace done?"

Elaine ran a cool hand down her face with a small shake of the head before settling her gaze upon Ronnie. "Wallace has been beating those girls for the past few years...apparently it had gotten really out of control and the girls ran away. A couple had took them in for the night and they had called child services to come and retrieve them the next morning. Now the reason why I asked about watching the news is because a few months ago Wallace attempted to kidnap Serena at a baby store and nearly succeeded...he as well is being charged for murder and from my understanding, he also attempted to kill a woman that is pregnant with twins. He is on the top of Japan's most wanted list at the moment."

Ronnie's eyes about popped out of his head. "Wallace...Wallace Tenoh?" At Elaine's nod, Ronnie exhaled heavily, running hand through the hair that hung in his eyes. Ronnie suddenly shook his head, giving off a bitter chuckle. "Damn...after all this time I thought she was loosing her mind...I guess she was really onto something."

Elaine arched a brow, tiling her head to the side slightly. "Who are you talking about?"

Ronnie snapped out of his musings looking at the pregnant woman beside him as if noticing her for the first time. "My wife...well ex-wife." The young lawyer turned towards Serena, seeing the blonde was still out of it. "My ex Emily and their mother Ellen were identical twins. Emily was distraught over the lose and something had happened at Ellen's funeral...I'm not sure what but Emily was extremely upset and hadn't spoken a word the whole car ride home. Once we got home and inside she just blurted out that Wallace had murdered Ellen, that her sister didn't die in a car accident. At the time I had brushed it off...I assumed she was just delusional from the stress and the loss of her sister..." Ronnie paused, chewing on his bottom lip. "Now after hearing what's been going on with Wallace...I'm starting to wonder if Emily was really on to something...that there was something seriously wrong going on that I didn't know nothing about."

"Maybe you should try talking to Emily about it."

Ronnie immediately shook his head. "No...Emily and I aren't on good terms right now...hell she's not even in this country right now."

"Damn..." muttered Elaine before her eyes widen slightly. "Would you mind telling Serena's and Amara's social worker this?"

"Sure, I have no problem with that."

"What happened?" Exclaimed Ken as he stormed through his office, worry etched across his face as his gaze fell upon the small blonde as the girl continued to slowly rock and mumble to herself.

"Where's Amara?" Questioned Elaine as she pushed herself off the wall she had been leaning on.

Ken made his ways across the room and kneeled down before his foster daughter, laying a hand gently upon her head, brushing a few of her bangs from her clammy forehead.

"Amara is with Ameilia and Damien."

"How did she do?"

Ken momentarily smirked. "She smoked the competition."

Elaine's eyes widened in barely concealed excitement. "She won?"

"1st place! That girl is a pro..I've never seen anyone handle a vehicle like that and she even started late!"

"Started late?" Questioned Ronnie with a arched brow.

Ken raise his head towards the man standing beside him before he as well stood to his feet with his hand outstretched. "Aaah you must be Ronnie, I've heard a lot about you from Amara and Serena. My name is Ken."

Ronnie shook the man's hand with a smile. "Nice to meet you."

"Um...why did Amara start the race late?"

Ken turned to his wife, scratching at the back of his head. "I don't know, the gun fired off and she just sat there like she was in a trance or something. When she finally took off, she came back with a vengeance." The young man than turned towards Serena. "So what's going on with her, Amelia told me to that something was wrong."

"I don't know...everything was good, the kids were all laughing and having a good time...then right at the start of the race Serena just started screaming her lungs out. She just now stopped screaming and is mumbling to herself bout trying to make someone stop and that she didn't mean to do it."

Ken frowned deeply, squatting down before the blonde once more. "Did you call Setsuna?"

"No I haven't."

Ken adjusted the glasses upon is face as he thought for a moment. "Call her and see if she will come by so we can get this handled."

"You are suppose to be helping Charles out with his car...look how about this, you take Chad and Rei home and help Charles. I'll call Setsuna and invite her to dinner and I'll take Serena and Amara home with me. Ronnie can follow me to my house with Mina, being that we already had planned a dinner with them."

"You want him there while you talk to Setsuna?"

"Yes...he told me some info that Setsuna really needs to hear."

Ken slowly nodded his head, thinking everything through thoroughly. "Sounds like a plan...go ahead and go to the car, I'll go and tell Mina and Amara to meet you over there."

Once Elaine nodded in agreement, Ken leaned in and gave his wife a quick kiss before leaving the room quickly. Ronnie made his way to Serena and scooped the child up in his arms and followed Elaine out the door.

-/-/-/-/-/-

Amara's grin of triumph for winning the race was quickly faltering as she realized that her little sister was not amongst their friends. With a slight frown, Amara took a hold of Michelle's hand and pulled the girl to the side.

"Where's Serena?"

Michelle looked down at her feet as she began to shift a bit uncomfortably. "She uh...kinda had a...uh...moment earlier."

Amara knitted her brows together as she tilted her head to the side. "A moment? What are you talking?"

Michelle sighed heavily, running a slender hand through her curly turquoise tresses. "Right when the race started and the gun sounded...Serena just started screaming."

Amara frowned deeply. "Why was she screaming?"

Michelle shrugged, looking exasperated. "I don't know! It just came out of know where!"

Amara dug her hands into her pockets, mind racing a mile a minute...wondering if...maybe...Serena had seen their father at the track too. Unfortunately the tomboy's thoughts came to a halt as she felt an arm drape around her shoulders.

"I really gotta pee, where's the bathroom?" Questioned Darien with a sheepish grin.

Amara could feel the sweat drop trail down the side of her face as she stared at her friend blankly. "Uh...yea...you can use the one in Ken's office. Go through that garage and make a left. You can't miss it.

"Thanks!" Replied Darien as he took off towards the garage.

Just as Amara was getting ready to speak, Ken made his way towards them, abruptly cutting the blonde short.

"Amara, go get Mina. Elaine and Ronnie are taking Serena to the car now." He then turned to Michelle. "Your mom is getting ready to leave." With that, Ken quickly turned, heading off to retrieve Rei and Chad.

Amara sighed heavily, looking at her best friend. "I have to go...maybe I will see you tomorrow...if not than I will see you at school Monday." After Michelle's nod of affirmation, Amara quickly darted off to find her cousin."

-\-\-\-\-\-\-

Diamond clenched his fist angrily, not believing that stupid blonde had actually beat him in the race. With gritted teeth, the silver haired boy quickly packed his things though paused as he saw someone enter the garage from the corner of his eye.

The boy suddenly smirked as he saw the kid he had a problem with hurriedly making his way through the garage as if in search of something. Diamond turned to the tool box beside him, his smirk darkening as he eyed the foot long metal wrench that sat on top of the toolbox.

Grabbing the handle of the not so light tool, Diamond let the object hang in his gloved hand at his side as he quietly stalked after the oblivious Darien Chiba.

-\-\-\-\-\-\-

Darien could feel himself dancing from one foot to the other in search of the bathroom. Being that he had to go so bad he couldn't remember if Amara had told him to turn left or right. As he started to head to the right, he felt a sharp blow come to the back of his left leg, causing him to cry out and fall down to one knee.

Before the ebony haired boy had a chance to comprehend what was happening, he felt another blow come to his back. Darien fell forward as he felt the tears welling in his eyes at the pain that was consuming him.

He desperately tried to pull himself to his hands and knees, only to have the air knocked out of him when a foot viciously kicked him in his side, causing him to roll onto his back with a whimper. Blinking back the tears, Darien's eyes widened slightly as they focused on Diamond's grinning face. The boy was standing over him with a wrench resting on his shoulder as the boy looked over his handy work.

Dropping the wrench to the ground, Diamond squatted down and snatched up a fist full of Darien's hair, jerking the boy's head painfully towards him.

"Look pretty boy...you stay away from my girl!"

"What are you talking about? What girl?" Cried Darien as he tried to jerk his head away from Diamond's grasp.

Diamond's grip only tightened as he sneered. "Serena you idiot!"

Darien's eyes narrowed dangerously close at the mentioning of his meatball headed friend. "She is not yours!" growled the boy.

Diamond grinned a very sickeningly sweet grin that made Darien swallow deeply. "See...now that's where you are wrong." The silvered hair boy leaned back slightly and with his free hand, traced the scar that was over the bridge of his nose.

"She marked me and I marked her. She is mine whether she likes it or not."

Darien's eyes widened, staring at the lunatic before him. "There is something seriously wrong with you!"

Diamond grinned maliciously. "You have no idea! So hears my warning; stay away from my girl and I won't have to mess up that pretty boy face of yours."

"Go screw yourself!" Snapped Darien.

Diamond smiled, gripping the boy's hair even tighter before slamming Darien's head into the concrete beneath him, knocking him out cold.

"I guess he wants to do it the hard way." Diamond stood to his feet looking down at Darien for a few moments before stepping over him and walking out of the room. "Fine by me...I rather do it the hard way!"

Author: I'm finally finshed with the chapter at last! I honestly thought I would never be motivated enough to finish it! I hope you guys enjoyed and please review, I'm really starting to lose my motivation for this story!


	31. B2: Chapter 15

Author: Thanks so much for the reviews you guys ^_^ I really appreciate them! Now on to the next chapter! Please enjoy!

Disclaimer: Don't own SM

Damien drummed his fingertips along the curve of his cane before looking down at his watch and then his surroundings. He frowned deeply, not seeing his grandson in sight and the worry began to creep in his mind.

The old man reached out and took a hold of Andrew's arm as the boy went to run past him and head towards the parking lot. The young blonde headed boy looked up at his best friend's grandfather a little startled.

"Have you seen Darien?" asked Damien, his eyes still scanning the crowds of people leaving the go-kart track vicinity.

Andrew quickly shook his head. "That's who I'm looking for, I was about to go ask Amara before she left."

The old man nodded, releasing the boy with a small sigh. "Okay, please find him for me."

Andrew once again nodded, darting off to the parking lot to try and catch Amara before she got in the car. Damien reached into his pocket, pulling out a white handkerchief and wiped the sweat from his brow before placing the cloth back in his pocket.

He once again looked around the crowd of people before sighing wearily and making his way to a bench to take a seat. He sat down heavily, relieved to rest his feet though his eyes stayed scanning the crowd...for some reason he had a very unsettling feeling residing in is stomach and the faster his grandson was found, the better.

-\-\-\-\-\-

Amara had just reached Elaine's car when she heard her name being called. Stopping, the short haired blonde turned, seeing Andrew jogging his way towards her.

"What's up?"

Andrew came to a stop, taking a moment to catch his breath. "Have you seen Darien?"

Amara arched a brow slightly. "Yeah...he came up to me earlier asking where the bathroom is. I told him to use Ken's...but that was a while ago."

"Where's the bathroom?"

"Go through the garage and make a left...you can't miss it."

"Thanks." replied Andrew before he quickly turned and bolted towards the direction.

Amara frowned slightly wondering if something was up, though shrugged off the feeling and climbed into the back seat of the car.

- /-/-/-/-/-

Andrew made his way to the garage, searching the wall for a light switch. Finally finding it, he flicked the switch and the garage was quickly illuminated with a bright light.

Scanning the area silently, the blonde didn't see any sign of his best friend and began to feel a bit worried. Darien was not the type to just run off...something was wrong.

"Darien?!" called out the boy as he began walking through the garage and began to head towards the bathroom, hoping that his friend was in there. Though, as the young boy rounded the corner, he ended up tripping and thankfully was able to stop himself from falling completely.

Frowning deeply, Andrew looked for whatever tripped him and found his eyes widening in horror as he caught sight of a foot. As his eyes slowly trailed up the length of the body, he suddenly jumped to his feet as his eyes fell on Darien's face.

"Oh my God! Darien!"

Andrew quickly ran to his friend's side, kneeling down beside him, resting a hand upon the boy's shoulder, giving his friend a small shake.

"Darien?...Darien, wake up!"

When the ebony haired boy didn't move, Andrew stood erect with wide horrified eyes. He took a few steps back, tripping over another object which had succeeded in causing the blonde to fall flat on his bottom.

Andrew eyes stared upon the large metal wrench and before he knew it, he was running through the garage screaming for help.

- /-/-/-/-/-/-

Elaine hung up the phone, just finishing briefing Setsuna with what was going on and social worker and A.J. were planning on meeting them at the Tsukino residence. Dropping the phone in her purse, the lavender haired woman spotted Amara getting in the back seat as Mina was talking to her father, demanding that she ride with Serena and Amara.

"Daddy! I have to make sure she is okay!"

"We're going to their house; you can make sure she is fine when we get there!"

"I want to make sure she is okay now!"

Elaine shook her head; this blonde was definitely related to Amara and Serena. She was another one that was extremely protective over her little meatball head.

Elaine made her way towards Ronnie, patting the man on his shoulder. "It's okay, she can ride with me."

Ronnie sighed with a nod of the head as his daughter grinned at him triumphantly. Mina turned from her dad, looking up at Elaine with a 1000watt grin which was scarily identical to Serena's grin.

"Thanks Mrs. Tsukino!"

"No problem, Hun." Said Elaine as she escorted the girl to her car and helped her into the back seat. Ronnie went ahead and got into his own vehicle as Elaine got into hers.

The lavender haired woman looked into her rear view mirror, eyes focusing on Serena, as the small girl had her knees drawn to her chest and her face buried within them. Both Amara and Mina stared at her in concern, not really sure what to do to make the normally bubbly girl feel better.

Sighing heavily, Elaine started the car and took off with Ronnie following closely behind her.

- /-/-/-/-/-/-

Damien jumped slightly when he heard yelling and he felt his heart beating rapidly as he saw the pure panic upon Andrew's face as he ran towards him.

The old man stood to his feet as fast as his body would allow him and he swallowed the lump that formed in his throat as he tried to prepare himself for what his grandson's best friend was going to tell him.

"Grandpa Chiba!" wheezed Andrew as he came to a stop in front of the old man, bending at the waist, with hands resting on his knees as he attempted to catch his breath.

Damien placed a hand on the boy's shoulder, worry etched in his eyes. "Where's Darien?"

"He's hurt real bad!"

"Where is he?"

"In the garage."

"Show me." Damien immediately began following Andrew as the boy began heading back towards the garage where his unconscious friend lay. The old man whipped out his cell phone calling 911 for an ambulance...by the horrified expression on Andrew's face, he knew it was bad. He just hoped it wasn't too bad...his grandson was all that he had left!

-/-/-/-/-/-

Elaine pulled up in her driveway with Ronnie parking beside her and before she could even get out the car, Ronnie was already out of his vehicle and getting the girls out of the backseat.

The expecting mother lead the way up the driveway, waving towards the officer that had been parked outside her home since early that morning. Ushering everyone inside, Elaine closed the front door and led the group upstairs. Going to Serena's room first, Elaine pointed to the small blonde's bed where the lawyer deposited his niece and both Mina and Amara were already on the bed surrounding the still silent small blonde.

Elaine sighed softly, not really sure what she could do to help Serena in any way. "Ronnie and I will be downstairs waiting on Setsuna. Let me know if you need anything."

Mina and Amara nodded as Serena silently laid down and stared blankly out of the window. Deciding that it was best to leave, Ronnie and Elaine left the room, cracking the bedroom door behind them.

-/-/-/-/-/-

Once Elaine and Ronnie exited the room, Amara immediately scooted closer to her sister, worry and curiosity present upon her young face.

"What happened Serena?" Amara paused, looking at the doorway and then onto her cousin before settling her gaze upon her little sister. "Did you see Dad at the track too?"

Serena involuntarily flinched as if she had been stuck, turning to her sister with dark weary eyes. "You saw Dad?"

Amara froze, completely not expecting the response. "You didn't see him?"

Mina sat silently, watching her cousins at a loss for words. Serena slowly shook her head. "No...I didn't see him." The small blonde nibbled on her bottom lip. "When did you see him?"

The tomboy licked her suddenly dry lips, picking at a loose thread upon her sister's bedcovering. "Right at the start of the race...he was standing outside of the fence watching me...I could of been seeing things though..." Amara suddenly frowned. "Wait...if you didn't see him then what happened? Why were you screaming?"

Serena clenched her eyes shut tightly as tears began to arise. "I-I don't know...when the gun went off...something happened."

Mina and Amara shared a glance silently. "Like what?" questioned Mina, the curiosity getting the best of her.

Serena sat up slightly, her gaze boring in Amara's. "When the gun went off...it was like...the memories from the day Amara and I ran away kept playing over and over in my mind." The small blonde turned from her sister's wide eyes and gazed out the window once more. "No matter how loud I screamed or how much I said I didn't mean it...it wouldn't go away."

Mina swallowed deeply as a thick tension filled the room. "Why did you guys runaway...why are you guys scared of Uncle Wallace?"

Amara glared at the wall. "If we tell you...you have to promise to never tell anyone."

Serena nodded. "What's said stays between us."

Mina chewed on her bottom lip as she looked between her cousins; she quickly began realizing things have just become very serious. There was a small...very small part of her telling her that she should just change the subject...that maybe it was best not to know.

The thought was quickly pushed to the back of her mind; she had to know. "I promise I won't tell anyone."

Amara sighed. "I guess I'll start from the beginning."

- /-/-/-/-/-/-

Elaine made her way downstairs and directly into the kitchen with Ronnie trailing behind her. The young lawyer took a seat at the kitchen table as the lavender haired woman made her way over to the fridge and began laying things out.

"So tell me...why did your ex think that Wallace killed Ellen?"

Ronnie leaned back in his seat, lacing his fingers behind his head. "I really don't know...I really wish I had paid more attention. I mean...I remember Ellen and the girls staying with us for a while...Amara had somehow gotten a pretty gruesome gash on the back of her head." Ronnie frowned slightly. "Damn...I wonder if Wallace had something to do with that...anyways over the last 3 or 4 years before Ellen died, Emily and Ellen kept having fall outs, to the point where Ellen had stopped coming around."

Elaine frowned slightly in thought. "Do you think Emily knew about the abuse?"

"With the way things are now...I have no doubt that she knew; I just don't understand why she never told me. I would have tried to help."

Elaine couldn't help the dry laugh that escaped her. "They both sound like Amara and Serena."

"How so?"

"Those two don't do anything without the other. Amara is extremely protective over her sister and Serena doesn't do or say anything unless she talks to Amara first. Those two try their hardest to carry the weight of the world on their shoulders when they don't have too. I also know that those two have a lot of secrets and I have no doubt in my mind those two hold the key to all of this madness."

"Hold the key? I'm not following."

The expecting mother paused in mid cut of her carrots and turned to the blonde headed man behind her. "Think about it...those two have been stuck in this situation from the beginning. Who would know what kind of treatment Ellen had to endure from her husband, who really knows Wallace's true colors...and who was there the day that Ellen died?"

"Amara and Serena." Whispered Ronnie as everything began to click. "Do you really think Wallace would have killed Ellen in front of them?"

Elaine turned, going back to cutting up her vegetables. "There's no doubt in my mind that he did...I can see it in their eyes whenever their mother is mentioned and the paralyzing fear the plagues them whenever their father is mentioned. That man murdered that poor woman and those girls watched their mother die by the hands of a man that was supposed to always love and protect them; not cause them harm."

Ronnie shook his head slightly. "You sound like her...you sound just like Emily."

Elaine smiled wryly. "Then Emily knew."

Before the discussion could be further discussed, the doorbell rang. Elaine cleaned her hands on the dish towel and excused herself to answer the door.

- /-/-/-/-/-/-

Mina sat stock still with wide eyes as she stared at her two cousins before her. The bow wearing blonde had just been quickly briefed on why exactly her cousins were so scared of their father; the abuse they endured including their mother, the events of the night Serena had gunned her father down and the more recent event of Wallace's attempt at kidnapping Serena.

Mina felt the tears welling in her eyes...she felt...somewhat betrayed. "Why didn't you guys tell me before? I-I could have told Mom and Dad and they could have helped!"

"Yeah...and he would have killed them and you just like..." Serena paused in mid rant, looking down at her shaking hands that dug into her upper thighs. "Besides…it wasn't like we were around much when Mom and Auntie Emily were mad at each other. Plus…you did move to London."

Mina narrowed her eyes as Amara quickly snapped her head to the window and Serena avoided her eyes entirely. "You saw me all the time in school! And what were you saying before? Just like what, Serena?"

Serena glared down at her hands that shook a little more violently as her mind reminisced on the horrifying memory that haunted her till this day.

"Just like he did Mom."

Mina's eyes just about bulged out of her head. "No...no really guys. Uncle Wallace didn't do that...Auntie Ellen died in a car accident."

"I saw it with my own eyes Mina." whispered Serena.

The ponytail rocking blonde shook her head in denial. "But the police said she wrecked into another car."

Amara slowly turned her head, looking at her cousin with a slight frown. "Because she was already dead before she got in the car."

- /-/-/-/-/-

Elaine quickly made her way to the front door and opened it with a smile on her face as her eyes landed upon Setsuna. Though the lavender haired woman frowned as she noticed the social worker was by herself.

"Where's A.J.?"

"He had gotten an emergency phone call right before we came. He said he will try to make it over here later on."

Elaine nodded, stepping to the side to allow her guest in. She ushered the woman through the house and into the kitchen. Ronnie stood to his feet and stretched out a hand towards the social worker.

"Ronnie Aino."

"Setsuna Meioh." She replied as she stretched out her own hand and placed it in Ronnie's, giving it a firm shake. Releasing his hand, Setsuna took a seat at the kitchen table as Elaine made her way back towards the counter to finish cutting up the vegetables for dinner.

Setsuna pulled a messenger back off her shoulder and placed in on the floor. Opening the bag, she pulled out a rather thick manila folder and a larger green 3 ringed binder and placed them on the table. She pushed the folder to the middle of the table and opened up the binder in front of her, flipping the pages until she was nearly half way through the pages before she came to a blank page. She then pulled a pen out of the pocket of her jacket before leaning back lazily in her seat.

"So…can you tell exactly what happened at the track today?"

"Well…" started Elaine as she placed the carrots into a bowl and started on the potatoes. "We all met up at the track…"

"Who was all that you met up with?" interrupted Setsuna as she began writing notes into the binder.

"Um, Ronnie came with Mina and Molly. My friend Amelia brought Amy,Lita, and Michelle. Damien brought Darien, Andrew and Melvin and I brought Serena, Rei and Chad."

Ronnie smiled slightly, glad that Amelia was able to take Molly home. He really wanted to get to the bottom of this as quickly as possible. He looked towards Setsuna as she wrote the information down before biting on the tip of her pen.

"Where were Amara and Ken?" questioned the social worker.

"They had left before Serena and I, they had gone to the track early to check on Amara's car and get a test run in." replied Elaine.

Setsuna nodded, writing everything down. "So what happened after you met up with your group?"

Elaine grabbed another potato and began peeling it. "We went inside and got ourselves seated in the stands, all the kids were grouped next to us group of adults. Amelia did watch the kids for a few when I went to talk to Ken about Rei's Grandfather's car. I came back up and everything was fine. All of the kids were talking and laughing so I took my seat with my group." Elaine shifted her stance as she began to chop up the potatoes. "Then the guy who starts the race shot the gun up in the air and that's when Serena started screaming."

Setsuna furrowed her brows slightly as she tapped her pen upon her bottom lip. "Do they always use a gun at the start of a race?"

Elaine arched the brow at the unexpected question before answering. "No, they have a large traffic light that starts the race, but lightening hit it last week and the new one hadn't come in yet. So they decided on that idea."

Setsuna nodded, writing that down quickly. "Hmm…so when the gun sounded, that's the exact moment Serena started screaming?"

"Yes."

"What happened after that?"

"I made my way over to her and all of the other kids were leaning away from her completely freaked out. When I saw her she was curled up in a ball, pulling her hair and was screaming at the top of her lungs. Amelia told Ronnie and I to take Serena to Ken's office while she and Damien got the kids back settled down. When we got to the office she had finally stopped screaming and was mumbling under her breath."

Setsuna arched a brow. "What was she saying?"

"I didn't mean it." replied Ronnie.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"I don't know." replied Ronnie and Elaine in unison.

"Hmm…what happened next?"

Elaine shrugged. "Ken came in after the race saying that Amara won. Then I briefed him on what happened with Serena and then I called you. After that we decided on who was taking who home and here we are."

Setsuna nodded before sighing heavily, tapping her pen upon her bottom lip in deep thought. She suddenly sat up in her seat once more, turning her head to look over at Elaine.

"Can you call Serena down, I would like to talk to her."

The lavender haired woman nodded and left the room to retrieve the child and Setsuna than turned her gaze upon Ronnie. "Elaine said that you had something to tell me."

Ronnie nodded. "Yes...at Ellen's funeral, my ex-wife Emily had told me Wallace had killed Ellen."

Setsuna's eyes's widened. "Why didn't you go to the police?!"

Ronnie sheepishly scratched at the back of his head. "She had no proof...plus she was emotionally unstable over Ellen's death. I felt that she was trying to point the blame on someone to make herself feel better."

The social worker nibbled on her bottom lip. "Can you get in contact with your ex...maybe we can talk this out and get a statement."

Ronnie shook his head. "Emily and I aren't on speaking terms...plus she's not even in this country."

Setsuna's face fell and she slouched back in her seat. "Damn..."

Ronnie furrowed his brows slightly. "Do you really think Wallace killed Ellen?"

"There's no doubt in my mind."

Before Ronnie could speak, Serena walked into the room with Elaine trailing behind her. The lavender haired woman made her way back to the stove as Serena took a seat at the kitchen table and smiled up at her social worker.

"Hey Setsuna."

The green haired woman returned the smile. "Hey Serena." The woman sat up in her seat. "So I heard something happened today."

Serena's smile quickly fell and she stared blankly at the kitchen table. "Yeah..."

Setsuna laid a hand on the girl's tense shoulder. "What happened?"

Serena frowned as she began to twiddle her thumbs absentmindedly. "I don't know...I mean everything was fine and me and my friends were laughing and joking around. Then I heard that gun shot and..."

All three adults leaned in closer towards the small blonde in anticipation. "And what?" questioned Setsuna.

Serena nibbled on her bottom lip. "It was like...I was stuck in a memory."

Setsuna narrowed her eyes. "What do you mean?"

The small blonde kept her gaze locked upon the kitchen table. "The memory from when we ran away kept playing over and over in my head...I couldn't make it stop."

The social worker arched a brow as she tried to figure out how to form her next question. "So...what exactly happened the day you and your sister ran away?"

Serena's hands instantly clenched up into tight small fists as she glared at the table; tension immediately filling the room. "We ran away." She muttered darkly under her breath.

Setsuna sighed heavily, leaning back in her seat. For a moment there she thought the child would finally talk about that day...but it was only wishful thinking. With a small smile, Setsuna gave a slight nod towards the child.

"Thanks Serena."

Three pairs of eyes watched as the child slid out of her chair and quietly exit the room. Setsuna gathered all of her materials and notes and placed them in her bag before standing to her feet.

Elaine frowned. "You're not staying for dinner?"

The social worker smiled politely. "Sorry, I have dinner waiting for me at home, plus I need to brief A.J. on this new situation."

"Oh okay, make it home safely."

"I will." Setsuna smiled, reaching out a hand towards Ronnie. "It was nice meeting you."

Ronnie grinned, shaking the woman's hand. "Like wise."

The social worker exited the room and soon out of the house. Ronnie looked towards Elaine and stood to his feet. "Do you need any help."

Elaine smiled, giving a nod of the head. "Yes, grab an apron and help me cut the vegetables."

- /-/-/-/-/-

Setsuna closed the door behind her and made her way towards her car before pulling her cell out of her purse; eyeing the caller I.D. before placing the phone to her ear. She climbed into the car and started the ignition before speaking.

"Hey A.J." she replied as she backed out of the Tsukino's driveway and began a onward journey down the road. The woman slammed on her breaks, making the vehicle come to a halting stop as she gripped the phone tightly.

"What happened to Darien?" There was a moment of silence. "Who would attack him?" Setsuna sighed wearily, running a hand through her tussled bangs. "I'm on my way to the hospital now, plus I need to talk to you about Serena anyways." After a small pause, Setsuna gave a half smile. "Alright, I'll see you in a few."

With that, Setsuna tossed her phone into her purse and once again began to drive, her mind now clouded with a double dosage of worry.

Author: well, that's all for now. Yea I know mostly talking in this chapter but I plan to make the next chapter a tad bit more...interesting :) until then loyal fans I hope you enjoyed! Don't forget to review and tell me your thoughts!


	32. B2: Chapter 16

Author: Man it feels soooooo good to be writing again. I had half of this chapter written for months and just could not get over my writers block. Hopefully it will be a while before it strikes again. N e Ways I hope you guys enjoy!

Disclaimer: Don't own SM

Setsuna's heart was pounding in her chest as she speed walked down the long corridor of the hospital before she was met with a familiar face.

"A.J."

The blonde headed cop turned and straightened up from the wall he was leaning up against. He gave a small smile to his longtime friend and made his way over towards her.

"How is he?" questioned Setsuna as she caught a glimpse of Darien's prone form lying in his hospital bed before a nurse closed off the curtain to conceal him as she checked over his vitals.

"He is going to be okay, he has a minor concussion and some bruising on various parts of his body."

Setsuna frowned deeply. "Do you know how this happened?"

A.J. sighed heavily, running a hand wearily though his short tresses. "No...Andrew found Darien unconscious in the garage at the track. No one knows what happened but Darien and he hasn't woken up since he got here."

"Are they sure he is going to wake up? I mean...he already has a bad head injury."

The young cop's eyes darkened slightly at the thought. "The doc said he should be up by morning and they plan on keeping a close eye on him due to his last head injury." A.J. than ushered Setsuna to one of the hard chairs that sat in the waiting room and they both seated themselves heavily on it. "So what exactly is going on with Serena?"

Setsuna sunk into her seat as her mind thought upon that situation. "Well...I'm not even sure. I'll have to talk to Hotaru about it but apparently gunshots trigger something in Serena's mind and she gets stuck inside her own head and bad memories plague her when it happens."

A.J narrowed his eyes in deep thought. "You said gunshots?"

Setsuna nodded slowly, eyeing her friend in curiosity. "What are you thinking about?"

"Hmm...I had found a gun in the Tenoh household when I went to look for Wallace. The chamber of the gun was empty and there was a lot of blood in the master bedroom."

Setsna furrowed her brows. "What are you getting at?"

"None of the girls had any bullet wounds right?"

"Correct."

A.J. nodded slowly. "...and Serena was the only one affected by the gunshot going off?"

Setsuna nodded, although she still wasn't sure where her friend was going. "I still don't see where you're going with this."

The cop nibbled on his bottom lip, shifting his gaze upon the social worker. "I have a feeling that Serena gunned down her father."

Setsuna nearly choked on her spit as her red eyes widened shockingly wide. "You have got to be kidding me; Serena?"

A.J stood to his feet and began to pace, his friend's red orbs watching his every movement. "Yes Serena...God it's making so much sense to me now." He turned to his friend to see her staring up at him skeptically. "Look Sets...you and I both know Amara was brutally raped and Serena wasn't. Now what if Serena had seen Wallace doing this to Amara and had gotten ahold of the gun to threaten him into stopping? What if Wallace didn't stop or tried to take the gun from Serena and she pulled the trigger or the gun accidently went off? Really think about it...I told you the 2nd set of finger prints on that gun wasn't Wallace's and they were too small to be an adults"

Setsuna gasped softly as everything began to click. "That makes much sense...Elaine and Ronnie said that Serena kept saying that she didn't mean it..." the woman chewed on her bottom lip. "She didn't mean to actually shoot her father."

A.J nodded enthusiastically. "Yes...so they had their father's wallet and that photo because they thought their father was dead so they had no reason to return."

Setsuna gave a wry smile. "Serena took the photo so she could remember her mother and Amara took the wallet so they could at least eat and possibly find somewhere to go."

"Yep." replied A.J. "although, this is all a assumption, unfortunately we don't have proof and we have to hear it out of Amara and Serena's mouths."

Setsuna sighed heavily. "Very true...but that's where Hotaru comes in."

"Hopefully Hotaru can get into those girls' heads because if she don't, I don't know who else will and this case will never be solved."

"Hotaru isn't called the best for nothing...she can do it...I just know she will."

A.J. smiled at the proud look in his friend's eyes. "I have no doubts about Hotaru...I'm just worried that this case will affect her mental state of mind." The man paused and stared down at the glossy tiled floor. "You know the type of shit she dealt with when we were in high school...and all the things her Dad had done to her."

Setsuna gritted her teeth at the dark memories. "We've come a long ways since then...but I understand. Hotaru had suffered at the hands of a sick bastard too...yet that's the reason why I know she will get through to those girls...she has shared their pain and torment. No one will ever understand like she will."

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Ken sighed wearily, hanging up his cell phone with heavy shake of the head. He had already thought the day had tuned for the worst, but after getting off the phone with Dorian, he was proved wrong.

He could not fathom that someone would attack a child at his track of all places. A child...and Darien of all people! Ken suddenly frowned as his mind fell upon his bubbly blonde; he wasn't quite sure how she would react to the news.

He already knew it wouldn't be good; Serena absolutely adored the raven haired boy. Ken ran a hand through his brown tresses lost in thought. He wasn't sure if he should mention this to the kids at all...especially after a day like today.

The young mechanic quickly shook the thought from his head; keeping secrets wouldn't help the situation at all, in fact it would make things worse. Honesty was the best way to handle this and the girls had every right to know.

Ken pulled up into the drive ways of his home and parked the truck behind his wife's. With a small sigh, the mechanic got out of the vehicle and made his way towards his home.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Ken opened the front door and smiled when he smelled the aroma of beef stew and his stomach grumbled in hunger. Rubbing his belly sheepishly, the mechanic made his way into the kitchen and froze as he arched a brow at Ronnie. The lawyer was setting the kitchen table with a pink apron wrapped around his waist. He then turned towards his wife as she was bent over, pulling out the large deep pan of beef stew out of the oven.

Ken frowned admonishingly, seeing that his wife wasn't allowed to even attempt to pick up anything heavy. Walking into the kitchen, he grabbed a spare flower printed oven mitt and grabbed ahold of the pan and pulled it out before his wife could even dwell on what happened.

Elaine jumped slightly as she looked up at her husband startled. "When did you get here?"

"Just now." Ken placed the pot on the counter and frowned at his wife. "You know you are not supposed to be picking up anything."

Elaine rolled her eyes skyward as she absentmindedly rubbed at her swollen belly. "That's not even heavy, stop worrying so much."

Ken's frown deepened. "You're carrying our child in there. I have every right to worry, so stop being stubborn and listen to the doctor."

Elaine grinned as she leaned up on her tip toes and pinched her husband's cheek. "You are so damn cute."

Ken's face fell as Ronnie chuckled at the man's reddening face. Ken turned his face from his wife's hold with a small pout. "I don't do cute; I'll take strikingly handsome though."

Elaine couldn't help but to roll her eyes again. "Hmm and you wonder where Amara gets her arrogance from."

Ken grinned as he placed the pot in the middle of the kitchen table. "So, has Setsuna come already?"

Elaine nodded as she began to clean off the messy countertop. "Yeah, she left not too long ago."

"She didn't want to stay for dinner?"

"No, she wanted to get to the bottom of this situation."

Ken nodded, rubbing at his clean shaven chin. "How's Serena?"

"She's...okay I guess. She really didn't talk too much, though she did tell Setsuna some things."

Ken arched a brow. "Like?"

"That when the gun went off, it was like she was trapped in the memory of when she and Amara had run away."

Ken furrowed his brows. "That's not good." The mechanic ran a hand through his hair in thought. "Well, this will be the last time we use a gun to start the race." He paused slightly before continuing. "So did she say what exactly happened on the day the both of them ran away?"

"No." The lavender haired woman sighed. "She wouldn't go into details at all about it."

"Damn." muttered Ken softly. He suddenly shrugged his shoulders wrapping an arm around his wife's shoulders. "Well enough of this topic, unfortunately I have some more bad news."

Ronnie's head snapped up as Elaine looked skeptically at her husband. "Bad news?" The pair said in unison.

Ken nodded solemnly. "Yes, but I want the girls in here to hear it too. Though, I would like to tell them after dinner."

Elaine nodded. "Okay, well dinner is done so I'll go get them."

The mechanic shook his head and ushered his wife to take a seat at the kitchen table. "No, you need to sit down and rest. I will go and get the girls."

Elaine pouted but obliged as she shot a glare at Ronnie as he began to chuckle at her pouted expression. Ken kissed his wife tenderly on her forehead before leaving the room.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Ken cleared his throat after wiping his mouth clean with a napkin. He pushed his now empty dinner plate away from him and looked at the three girls that say before him. Both Amara and Mina sat on either side of Serena and both stared up at the man curiously as Serena fiddled with her fork on her plate.

Looking over the girls one more time, he finally sat up in his seat and adjusted his glasses upon his face. "Girls..I have something to tell you."

At this, Serena placed her fork down and looked up at Ken. "Like what?"

Ken cleared his throat once more and ran a hand nervously through his hair as he felt Ronnie and Elaine looking at him with curiosity as well.

"There was another incident at the track."

At this announcement everyone simultaneously furrowed their brows and looked amongst each other in utter confusion.

"Another incident?" questioned Elaine. "What else happened?"

A cloud of thick tension filled the small kitchen and Ken swallowed deeply, wishing that he wasn't the one that had to relay this message.

"Darien had gotten hurt."

Elaine gasped in surprise as Serena had begun to wrap her hands around her fork and clenched it tightly within her small hand. She gazed at her foster father unseeingly which in turn unnerved the man.

"What happened?" whispered the small blonde.

Ken licked his suddenly dry lips and turned his gaze from Serena to look down at the wooden kitchen table.

"Andrew had found him unconscious in the garage. It seems as though he had been attacked...he had been beat with a metal wrench."

"Is he okay?" questioned Mina with eyes as wide as saucers.

"He is a little banged up but he will be okay. He should be released from the hospital Monday."

Serena had been gripping her fork so hard that it begun to dig into her skin in which her sister took note of. Amara slipped a hand underneath the table and took hold of her sister's free hand and clutched it within her own. The small blonde snapped out of her reverie, loosening her hold on the eating utensil, gaze once again focusing on Ken.

"When can I see him?"

Ken frowned. "I don't think that's a good idea..."

Elaine nodded in agreement. "Yes with all of today's excitement I think it would be best if you waited to see him at school."

Serena scowled not liking the idea in the least which caused the Tsukinos to arch a brow in surprise. "I'm fine; I want to see my friend tomorrow."

Ken sighed knowing damn well that he couldn't stop the small blonde from seeing someone that she cared about. Running a hand through his short tresses he leaned back in his seat, eyeing the child with a small smile.

"I will call Dorian tonight and see if Darien will be allowed to have visitors tomorrow."

Serena's scowl quickly vanished as a large grin came across her face as she jumped out of her seat to make her way around the table to give her foster father a hug."

"Thank you!" exclaimed the blonde.

Ken chuckled, returning the hug with as much enthusiasm.

Elaine smiled warmly as she decided to stand and looked towards Mina and Amara. "Being that you're done, go ahead and place your dishes in the sink and wash up."

All three girls nodded and retrieved their dishes and placed them in the sink before bolting out of the room to head to the bathroom upstairs to clean up.

Elaine sighed softly, giving her husband a sideways glance. "Why do I get the feeling that Serena knows who done this to Darien?"

"Because you have an amazing 6th sense for these things?" replied Ken with a small smile.

Elaine grinned. "Are we going to do something about it?"

The mechanic shook his head. "Nope...the girls can handle themselves...if they need us than they will come to us. Until then, we are just going to have to sit back and watch."

"That's what I was afraid of." whispered the lavender haired woman as she rubbed her swollen belly.

~\~\~\~\~\~\~\~\~\~\~

Hotaru sighed heavily as she paced the living room and every so often would glance at the time programmed into the satellite receiver.

It had been hours since Setsuna had left to see what was going on with Serena and the woman has yet to make an appearance or make a phone call.

Sighing once more, the psychiatrist plopped down heavily on her plush couch and grabbed the remote control to the television. Deciding that pacing the floor wasn't going to make time fly so why not channel surf to compensate.

Finally finding some reruns of Grey's Anatomy, Hotaru slouched back in her seat and propped her feet up on the coffee table. Just as she got comfortable, the raven heard the lock of her front door unlatch and she was standing to her feet instantly.

Setsuna stepped through the front door, looking weary and paused in hanging up her jacket as she spotted her lover standing in the living room, staring up at her anxiously.

"Where have you been?!"

Setsuna cringed, hanging up her coat and massaging her throbbing temples softly. "Please lower your voice, I have such a headache."

A small frown marred Hotaru's face as she looked upon her love in concern; Setsuna only got headaches when she was stressed...so something serious must have happened. Making her way across the living room, the raven grabbed a hold of her lover's hand and led her to the sofa.

"Come on; let's get you seated so you can tell me what's going on."

The social worker nodded and gladly accepted the help of plopping down on the couch. She sighed happily when she laid her head upon Hotaru's lap and the raven began to trail her fingers through the black and green tresses.

"So what happened?" whispered Hotaru softly.

Setsuna closed her eyes and moaned softly as her girlfriend's fingers danced across her scalp, relieving the tension in her aching head.

"A lot has happened but I will start off with Serena since she was the reason why I left in the first place."

Hotaru nodded arching a raven brow in curiosity. "Okay...start off with Serena's situation."

"Serena seems to have a serious issue with guns."

Hotaru's brow arched even higher. "I have no clue where this is going."

Setsuna smiled but explained. "Amara had her first race today, in which she won by the way. Anyway, the kart track normally uses a traffic light to start their races but theirs was struck by lightning so they decided to use a gun as an alternative to start the race. When the gun fired Serena flipped out."

"Flipped out how?" questioned the raven seriously.

Setsuna furrowed her brows, remembering what the small blonde had said. "Elaine told me that Serena started screaming bloody murder and that she had to be removed from the stands. She also told me that Serena was also mumbling 'I didnt mean it'. When I talked to Serena she told me that she was trapped within the memory of what happened the day she and Amara ran away."

"Interesting..." muttered Hotaru as she began to stare off blankly.

Setsuna opened her eyes and looked upon her lover knowingly. "You already have a diagnosis in mind?"

Hotaru snapped violet eyes upon the social worker with a smirk. "Yes; sounds like she has PTSD. I am not surprised though, because Amara has it too even though her symptoms are entirely different."

Setsuna stared at her girlfriend blankly. "What's PTSD?"

"Posttraumatic Stress Disorder; once called shell shock or battle fatigue syndrome, is a serious condition that can develop after a person has experienced or witnessed a traumatic or terrifying event in which serious physical harm occurred or was threatened. PTSD is a lasting consequence of traumatic ordeals that cause intense fear, helplessness, or horror, such as a sexual or physical assault, the unexpected death of a loved one, an accident, war, or natural disaster. Now the symptoms are grouped into 3 different categories; reliving, avoiding, and increased arousal. In Serena's case her symptoms is grouped with reliving which is when you repeatedly relive the ordeal through thoughts and memories of the trauma. These may include flashbacks, hallucinations, and nightmares. They also may feel great distress when certain things remind them of the trauma."

Setsuna nodded slowly, letting the information sink in. "So what are Amara's symptoms?"

Hotaru tapped her chin in thought. "Well you and I both know that Amara was badly affected by her rape. Her symptoms are grouped with increased arousal which is excessive emotions; problems relating to others, including feeling or showing affection; difficulty falling or staying asleep; irritability; outbursts of anger; difficulty concentrating; and being "jumpy" or easily startled. The person may also suffer physical symptoms, such as increased blood pressure and heart rate, rapid breathing, muscle tension, nausea, and diarrhea." Hotaru shifted slightly. "Though Amara doesn't have all of the symptoms...at least as far as I can tell. "

"That makes sense." Replied the social worker softly. "Especially with Serena and the new assumption I got from A.J. earlier."

Hotaru's brows arched again in curiosity. "What new assumption?"

"When A.J. had gone to the Haruno residence after getting the girls, he had found a gun with no bullets and a pool of blood within the master bedroom. We know that Amara was raped whereas Serena wasn't " A.J. confirmed that the prints found on the gun were too small to be Wallace's or Elaine's for that matter. So the theory is, Serena had seen what Wallace was doing to Amara and tried to stop him by threatening him with the gun. He believes that the gun fired accidently or Wallace made a move and Serena pulled the trigger."

Hotaru tapped her chin thoughtfully. "Makes sense...so the gun would be Serena's trigger to the PTSD.

"So it seems." replied Setsuna.

A sudden look of determination sparked in Hotaru's violet eyes. "Monday Serena's has her therapy session. Maybe I can finally get her to talk to me about the day they ran away."

Setsuna's red orbs looked upon her lover with hope. "You think you can get her to talk?"

"I will try my best." Hotaru ran her thumb across the side of her lover's smooth face. "Now what else happened?"

The social worker sighed as her thoughts shifted upon Darien. "A.J wasn't able to come to the Tuskino's with me because he was at the hospital."

Hotaru gasped in concern. "Is he okay?!"

"A.J is fine…well physically. He was there because Darien was omitted to the hospital."

"Darien? What happened to him?"

"While everyone was trying to deal with Serena at the Track, Darien was attacked in Ken's garage and was beat with a metal pipe."

Hotaru's eyes about bulged out of her head. "Oh my God! How is he? Is he okay?"

"A concussion and various bruising along his body."

"Who the hell would do something like this?" the therapist cried in outrage.

Setsuna shook her head, sharing her lover's anger. "I don't know but I hope whoever done it will be dealt with."

Hotaru could only nod in agreement.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

Serena held a red rose and a card in her hand as she made her way down the long corridor of the children's wing of the hospital. She looked up at Elaine as the woman silently walked beside her before shifting her gaze back to the hallway. Her eyes lit up when she spotted Darien's grandfather exiting a room and the small blonde sped up her pace.

"Grandpa Chiba!"

The old man raised his head and smiled as Serena came bounding towards him and gave him a hug; he patted the child upon her head affectionately.

"Hello Serena."

"How's Darien? Is he okay?"

"He is okay; he woke up not too long ago. You can go inside if you like." Serena nodded her head enthusiastically and made her way to the door.

"I'll wait out here for you." Replied Elaine as she watched the blonde quickly enter the room.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-

The room was dimly lit and Serena eyes fell upon Darien as the boy had his head turned from her and was staring out of the window. When the door softly clicked behind the small blonde, Darien turned his head and a large smile graced his face.

"Serena!"

Serena grinned as she made her way to the bed. She held out the red rose and the card to her friend. "This is for you."

Darien smiled as a small blushed graced his pale cheeks and he delicately took the flower from his friend's hand and placed it on the bedside table before grabbing the card next.

"I got everyone to sign it."

Darien felt touched when he opened the card and saw all of his friends' names written inside of the Get Well Soon card. Closing the card and placing it beside the rose he tilted his head slightly to the side as he saw Serena frowning.

"What's wrong?"

Serena stared at her friend before looking down at her hands that were balled up in the boy's white blanket. "What happened…who did this to you?"

Darien's eyes narrowed before turning to look out of the window. "I don't remember."

Serena's frown deepened. "You're lying."

The ebony haired boy snapped his head towards the blonde. "No I'm not!"

Serena's eyes narrowed dangerously close. "Then look me in the face and tell me that."

Darien scowled before looking down at his own hands that lay in his lap. "I don't want you getting hurt."

Serena clasped Darien's hands within her own. "Who did this to you?"

"I can't tell you."

"It was Diamond, wasn't it?" Darien didn't respond but the widening of his eyes was all the answer that she needed.

"Darien…please tell me why he did this to you."

Serena watched as the boy internally debated what to say before looking at her. "He wants me to stay away from you."

The blonde furrowed her brows. "Why?"

Darien scowled once again. "Because… he likes you." Serena's face morphed into one of horror and Darien nearly erupted into laughter.

"EWW!"

To say the least, Darien was quite pleased with her reaction. It took a moment for Serena to regain her composure as she gagged in disgust. She turned narrowed eyes upon her friend as she heard him laugh.

"That is not funny!"

Darien doubled over and laughed harder.

Serena pouted before she grinned wickedly. "That's why Beryl likes you!"

Darien choked on his spit and sputtered. "w-what!?" His shock quickly wore off as he was suddenly angry when a thought crossed his mind. "Is that why she attacked you in the bathroom?"

"Yeah…she doesn't want me around you at all."

Darien shook his head. "This is crazy."

"No…they're crazy."

"You got that right." muttered Darien. "So what should we do about this…I'm not going to stop talking to you."

Serena smirked, which eerily resembled Amara. "I'm going to put Diamond in his place."

"What? No! I don't want you going anywhere near him."

"I'm not afraid of him Darien and I'm not going to let him hurt the people I care about."

"What do you plan on doing?"

Serena smiled at him sweetly. "Give him a taste of his own medicine."

Before Darien could respond, a soft knock was heard from the door and Elaine poked her head into the room. She smiled at Darien before turning her head towards her foster daughter. "I know you want to stay longer but we really have to go."

"Okay I'll be right out." Elaine nodded and left the room.

Serena turned back to Darien and smiled at him warmly. "I'll tell everyone you are okay and I'll see you Monday."

Just as the blonde was about to leave the room, Darien stopped her. "Hey Serena…"

The blonde stopped at the door and looked up at him. "Yeah?"

"Just be careful, okay?"

Serena grinned. "Careful is my middle name!"

Darien rolled his eyes. "I think trouble is your middle name."

Serena stuck out her tongue out playfully. "See yah!"

Darien grinned. "See yah!" He watched as his friend left the room and he leaned back on his bed deep in thought. If Serena was going to give Diamond a piece of her mind than he had all the right to give Beryl a piece of his.

Author: Well that's all for now, hopefully the next chapter will be out a lot sooner. Thanks for your patience and please review to let me know what you think


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